• Industry vacancies bounce back , with available jobs 8 % ahead of pre-pandemic levels

• 28,000 construction industry roles available

• Government-backed recruitment platform , the Construction Talent Retention Scheme , helps get candidates and employers matched online

While a range of industries such as hospitality , leisure and retail continue to reel from the impact of Covid-19 and lockdown , construction has become one of the shining lights for job hunters , bouncing back from its sharp 41 % fall in vacancies in March 2020 to become one of the very few areas where recruitment is now picking up .

Last month ( 26 January 2021 ), the Office for National Statistics ( ONS ) published its latest ‘ Labour Market Overview ’ with all employment-related statistics for the UK . Although unemployment rates continue to rise , job hunters can take some comfort from encouraging figures about the industry ’ s recovery .

The new figures from the ONS , covering October to December 2020 , show that vacancies in the sector are now 8 % higher than the same period last year , pre-Covid . There are an estimated 28,000 vacancies , another jump up from the previous three months . Construction is one of just two sectors to have seen an increase in vacancies overall since December 2019 .

The ONS says : “ Construction was one of the sectors to see a large quarterly fall in vacancies at the start of the pandemic in April to June 2020 , with a consistent recovery since the summer .”

To encourage more people to sign up for the wide range of construction roles now needed , a free-to-use recruitment platform , the Construction Talent Retention Scheme , is launching its latest social media campaigns promoting the latest opportunities for skilled workers .

The Construction Talent Retention Scheme is a not-for-profit programme , funded by the Department for Business , Energy and Industrial Strategy and backed by business organisations , professional institutions and construction unions . Its online portal enables job hunters to upload their CV and make contact with more than 770 potential employers .

The portal is currently advertising 1,124 live vacancies for roles as varied as senior construction project managers to customer service staff , engineers , salespeople , estimators , digger operators , HGV drivers , handypersons , electricians , plasterers and plumbers , and warehouse assistants .

Three women seeking roles in the industry – Julie Traynor , Liza Zanoni and Anne Couesnon – are among more than 1,400 candidates who have already signed up to the scheme . In each case , they have found

the portal is great , easy to use and creates an effective marketplace between employers and _candidates

the Construction Talent Retention Scheme a good source of potential vacancies .

Julie Traynor , a chartered quantity surveyor and barrister , says :

“ After my management consultancy and social strategy business was severely impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic , I was so pleased to find the Construction Talent Retention Scheme . The portal is great , easy to use and creates an effective marketplace between employers and candidates , without the need of a middleman .

“ Knowing that so many employers can easily access my professional profile , and correspondingly , that I have direct access to their opportunities and vacancies , is wonderful . It makes the whole process of finding a new opportunity much less stressful . I would definitely recommend to

anyone seeking a role in the construction industry to sign up to the Construction Talent Retention Scheme .”

Liza Zanoni had been working as a Project Manager for a small building company in Wales until last October . She says :

“ As soon as I realised my role was at risk of redundancy , I put as much time and effort as I could into identifying and making use of all of the different platforms and channels to look for jobs and to network with people .

“ I first found out about the Construction Talent Retention Scheme while I was on LinkedIn and immediately liked what I saw . What immediately struck me was the fact it ’ s an extremely professional service and an intelligent response to the current situation . The tools are easy to understand and use .”

Anne Couesnon has been using the scheme to look for new roles in business development and bid management . She says :

“ I immediately logged on to the site and found it was extremely easy to use . I ’ ve found it really useful because it contains a large database of companies I ’ m interested in working for and it ’ s constantly updated with new roles , which I check on a regular basis .

“ I ’ ve applied for more than 20 vacancies so far and taken part in interviews , one of which I ’ m waiting to hear back on , and it ’ s all been through the Construction Talent Retention Scheme .”

The Construction Talent Retention Scheme can be found at https :// www . trs-system . co . uk / construction and vacancies are also regularly promoted on social media