A growing number of HR departments are recruiting new employees into their organisations, new research has found. A report published by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) revealed that 74 per cent  intend to take on permanent staff in the next three months.

Its latest JobsOutlook survey suggests employers have more optimism and confidence,  following a period of uncertainty during the run up to the general election. Furthermore, eight out of ten 80 per cent) of those polled said that economic conditions in the country as a whole are getting better.

Almost half (46 per cent) expect hiring and investment to improve. Some 600 employers were surveyed for the study. seven in ten (71 per cent) employers plan to hire permanent staff in the medium term, while four in ten (41 per cent) employers increased pay/earnings for staff in the last year.

Speaking about the findings, Kevin Green, REC chief executive, said: “Our data shows that almost all businesses are operating at capacity and want to take on more staff to meet demand, but the reality is that chronic skills shortages are making this difficult. For workers the outlook is good. Starting salaries continue to rise as employers compete for talent, and permanent and temporary opportunities are available to those with the required skills and capability.

“With candidates in short supply employers need to think hard about how they attract jobseekers. Longer term, business, government and educators must work together to help alleviate the skills shortages so that candidates are equipped with the skills that employers need.”

With so many employers taking on new recruits, it is essential that employers are able to organise and access the HR schedules, attendance and pay grades of both new and existing staff members.

This will prevent any unnecessary delays or uncertainty when making changes to the workforce.

Technology such as HR Software can help you to integrate all of the existing databases and employee records together in one place.