TopCV index of job seeker sentiment reveals light at the end of the tunnel as market confidence grows

LONDON (13th October 2021) — TopCV, the world’s largest CV-writing service, has revealed that UK job seekers are finally starting to feel more confident about the current job market and overall job security, after several months of feeling disheartened.

The TopCV Job Seeker Sentiment Index was created in April 2021 to keep abreast of how job seekers are feeling and behaving amid so much uncertainty. According to its latest figures, UK job seekers are starting to see light at the end of the tunnel. Confidence about current job market conditions is up over 24% in the last six months.

Even those who were feeling negative about their own job prospects were optimistic about the UK job market in general. The majority of people who had reported feeling “frustrated” or “very negative” about their personal job search in September acknowledged that today’s job market and overall job security is better than it was a year ago — a substantial increase from the previous month. In addition, the percentage of respondents who reported feeling negative about their job searches has also steadily declined month-on-month.

Amanda Augustine, careers expert at TopCV, commented: ”We were surprised to see that confidence in the current job market has grown in spite of the end of the furlough scheme. The fact that redundancies have not been as high as expected may be contributing to a more positive outlook.”

When asked about the current job market and overall job security, other key findings included the following:

• Gender: Overall confidence levels amongst men and women were the same in August. Both became more optimistic in September 2021 – particularly women, whose confidence was 4% higher.
• Employment status: By and large, overall confidence levels among those employed, as well as those unemployed, have gradually increased. However, in September, unemployed respondents felt slightly more confident than those currently employed.