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UK Job Vacancies Drop to Five‑Year Low as Small Firms Curb Hiring

1 reports1 sources10/20/2026 updated

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UK job vacancies fell by 21,000 to 691,000 in the three months to September, the steepest decline since the start of the year and the lowest level in more than five years, according to the Office for National Statistics. The drop is largely driven by small firms, which report higher labour costs as a key reason for scaling back recruitment. Rising energy prices, triggered by the Iran war, along with increases in National Insurance contributions and the minimum wage, have made employment more expensive, prompting firms to tighten hiring. The contraction in vacancies signals a tightening labour market and may affect wage growth and business expansion plans across the UK economy.

Written with AI from the reporting · updated 10/20/2026

Latest developmentOct 20, 14:49
UK job vacancies drop 21,000 as small firms curb hiring
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  1. 1Unclassified fact stationOct 20, 15:11single sourcereport-time onlyrevised

    UK job vacancies fall to lowest in over five years

    Read original source ↗ BBC BusinessReplay this moment in the explorer
    Evidence & revisions · 1 source records
    Subject：
    UK labor market
    Action：
    job vacancies fell
    Object：
    691,000
    Occurred (fact side)：
    not recorded
    BBC Business ↗Report pageRevision 3 · currently revised
    Published (valid side)：
    Oct 20, 14:49
    First seen (known side)：
    Oct 20, 15:11
    Fact stationSingle source · one-sided claimRevisedReport-time only

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Oct 20
  1. BBC BusinessRelated fact: single sourceFact occurrence time unverifiedSource report revised
    UK job vacancies drop 21,000 as small firms curb hiring

    Report first recorded Oct 20, 15:11

    UK job vacancies fell 21,000 to 691,000 in the three months to September, the largest decline since the start of the year, with small businesses citing rising labor costs as the main factor. The unemployment rate fell to 4.7% in the three months to August, but wages growth lagged behind inflation, rising just 0.8% in real terms. Vacancies dropped to their lowest level in over five years, concentrated in the construction sector, while the jobless rate for those aged 16 to 24 remained elevated at 15.6%.

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