The number of people employed in the UK’s retail sector grew by 2.9 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter, the fastest rate of growth for two years, thanks to supermarkets taking on more part-time workers.
Figures released today by the British Retail Consortium (BRC) show that the equivalent of just over 20,500 full-time jobs were created between July and September, although permanent posts in the non-food sector were lost as shops closed. Tesco, Britain’s biggest retailer, has been among those hiring staff as part of its turnaround plans.
Some 68 per cent of retailers plan to take on extra staff in the run up to Christmas, up from 54 per cent at this time last year. But BRC director general Stephen Robertson warned “not to get too carried away” and called on Chancellor George Osborne to freeze business rates.