South East – Regional Labour Market Trends

Technology and Infrastructure Investment Reshape South East Recruitment

Key findings include:

• South East professional vacancies forecast to rise 5.4% despite declining national hiring share.
• Technology hiring projected to surge 32.9% amid accelerating AI and infrastructure investment.
• Business Development and Sales vacancies expected to climb 34.8% as firms prioritise revenue growth.
• Retail and Consumer Goods vacancies forecast to decline 13.8% during weaker consumer conditions.

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Professional hiring activity across the South East is expected to strengthen again in 2026, although growth is becoming increasingly concentrated around specific functions. Rather than expanding headcount broadly, many employers are prioritising digital capability, engineering delivery and revenue generation, while more cyclical sectors continue to soften. Professional vacancies are forecast to rise 5.4% year-on-year, though the region’s national hiring share is expected to edge down from 17.1% to 16.7%, suggesting recovery elsewhere in the UK is now accelerating faster. Meanwhile, March delivered the strongest monthly result of the year so far, with vacancies rising 14.5% compared with February as delayed hiring decisions finally returned to market.

Technical Hiring Continues To Strengthen

Across the South East, demand is increasingly centred on technical and commercially focused roles. IT professional vacancies are forecast to rise 14.2% in 2026, lifting the profession’s regional hiring share from 19.7% to 21.4%. At the same time, software engineering vacancies are projected to increase by 21.9%, largely driven by cybersecurity investments, cloud migration projects, and wider adoption of AI-enabled business systems. Engineering hiring is also expected to climb 18.8%, reflecting sustained activity across infrastructure, defence and energy programmes. Elsewhere, commercial recruitment remains particularly resilient. Business Development and Sales vacancies are forecast to surge by 34.8%, underscoring that firms continue to prioritise revenue growth despite a more cautious economic backdrop.

Technology And Industrials Pull Ahead

Sector-level hiring patterns are becoming increasingly uneven across the region. On one hand, technology-led industries continue to expand rapidly as employers invest heavily in digital infrastructure and operational resilience. Technology, Media and Telecoms vacancies are forecast to rise 27.8% year-on-year, while technology hiring alone is expected to increase 32.9%. Similarly, Industrials vacancies are projected to grow 26.5%, supported by infrastructure delivery, defence manufacturing and energy transition projects. Healthcare hiring, by comparison, remains relatively stable, with vacancies forecast to rise 8.0%. On the other hand, consumer-facing sectors continue to face pressure. Real Estate and Construction vacancies are expected to decline around 7%, while Retail and Consumer Goods hiring could fall 13.8%.

Infrastructure Firms Continue Expanding

Among the South East’s largest employers, engineering and infrastructure firms remain some of the most active recruiters. AECOM is forecast to increase vacancies 16.1% in 2026, benefiting from continued investment across transport and environmental programmes. Likewise, Kier Group is expected to record even stronger growth, with vacancies projected to rise 46.5% as public-sector infrastructure pipelines remain active despite wider economic caution. Defence hiring also continues to strengthen. BAE Systems is forecast to increase vacancies by a further 9.4%, supported by rising defence expenditure across Europe. Pharmaceutical recruitment trends, however, are more mixed. While Johnson & Johnson is expected to increase hiring 12.2%, GSK is forecast to reduce vacancies 23.7% following earlier expansion.

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