Arab Press

بالشعب و للشعب
Friday, Sep 12, 2025

£150,000 starting salaries as firms fight for staff

£150,000 starting salaries as firms fight for staff

A professional recruitment firm says it is placing graduate lawyers on starting salaries as high as £150,000 amid a shortage of workers.

Alan Bannatyne, chief financial officer at Robert Walters, told the BBC people in many UK industries were quitting for better paid jobs amid soaring demand.

"15% is the minimum pay rise we're seeing, but some are increasing their salaries by up to 50%," he said.

"Unless something significant happens, 2022 should be even better for staff."

UK job vacancies have hit record levels since the economy reopened as employers scramble to meet demand.

Robert Walters, which focuses on placing professionals in roles, said this had put firms in a "fierce competition for talent" and it was "incredibly hard to find the right people".

Employers have put up salaries to attract workers, although Mr Bannatyne said there had been "winners and losers" from Covid and not everyone was in a position to pay well.

"Bricks-and-mortar retailers and airlines have really struggled so will probably not be paying bonuses or giving pay rises," he told the BBC.

"So they become a hunting ground for other high growth businesses, such as online retailers, anything to do with technology and digital, and manufacturers of household goods."

Robert Walters, which has offices in Asia, Europe and the US, said it had seen its best December ever, with net fee income up 39% globally.

Recruitment agency Manpower said it was seeing a similar trend, as employers struggled to fill vacancies for highly-skilled positions.

UK director Chris Gray told the BBC: "It is absolutely a candidate-led market right now.

"Those with the in-demand skills hold the power, and have the freedom and flexibility to accept a job that suits their particular needs and expectations."

'Huge' bonus pool


Skills shortages have been particularly pronounced in sectors such as law, where vacancies for London-based associates rose some 131% year-on-year between January and November last year, according to research from recruiter BCL Legal and data firm Vacancysoft.

Newly qualified lawyers at the best-known firms are now reportedly earning as much as £147,000 before bonuses.

City banks have also boosted starter salaries to retain talent and Robert Walters predicts the bonus pool this year will be "huge".

Wages have also been increasing in lower paid jobs. Last week, Sainsbury's became the latest supermarket to pay shop workers at least £10 an hour, following similar moves from Morrisons, Lidl and Aldi.

Many workers have revaluated their careers during lockdown and changed jobs or left the workforce, in what some have labelled the "great resignation".

It has helped to drive up salaries across the UK, with growth in average pay including bonuses standing at 4.9% year-on-year between August and October.

James Reed, chairman of recruitment agency Reed Recruitment, said the UK was in the midst of a "jobs boom" that showed no signs of abating.

"It's the best time in 50 years to look for a new job, in a situation where the pendulum has swung in jobseekers' favour."

Newsletter

Related Articles

Arab Press
0:00
0:00
Close
Turkish authorities seize leading broadcaster amid fraud and tax investigation
Apple Introduces Ultra-Thin iPhone Air, Enhanced 17 Series and New Health-Focused Wearables
Big Oil Slashes Jobs and Investments Amid Prolonged Low Crude Prices
Social Media Access Curtailed in Turkey After CHP Calls for Rallies Following Police Blockade of Istanbul Headquarters
Gold Could Reach Nearly $5,000 if Fed Independence Is Undermined, Goldman Sachs Warns
Uruguay, Colombia and Paraguay Secure Places at 2026 World Cup
Trump Administration Advances Plans to Rebrand Pentagon as Department of War Instead of the Fake Term Department of Defense
Tether Expands into Gold Sector with Profit-Driven Diversification
Trump’s New War – and the ‘Drug Tyrant’ Fearing Invasion: ‘1,200 Missiles Aimed at Us’
At the Parade in China: Laser Weapons, 'Eagle Strike,' and a Missile Capable of 'Striking Anywhere in the World'
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Iran Faces Escalating Water Crisis as Protests Spread
More Than Half a Million Evacuated as Typhoon Kajiki Heads for Vietnam
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Dogfights in the Skies: Airbus on Track to Overtake Boeing and Claim Aviation Supremacy
Tim Cook Promises an AI Revolution at Apple: "One of the Most Significant Technologies of Our Generation"
Are AI Data Centres the Infrastructure of the Future or the Next Crisis?
Miles Worth Billions: How Airlines Generate Huge Profits
Zelenskyy Returns to White House Flanked by European Allies as Trump Pressures Land-Swap Deal with Putin
Beijing is moving into gold and other assets, diversifying away from the dollar
Trump Backs Putin’s Land-for-Peace Proposal Amid Kyiv’s Rejection
Zelenskyy to Visit Washington after Trump–Putin Summit Yields No Agreement
Iranian Protection Offers Chinese Vehicle Shipments a Cost Advantage over Japanese and Korean Makers
United States Sells Luxury Yacht Amadea, Valued at Approximately $325 Million, in First Sale of a Seized Russian Yacht Since the Invasion of Ukraine
Saudi Arabia accelerates renewables to curb domestic oil use
Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodríguez announce engagement
Asia-Pacific dominates world’s busiest flight routes, with South Korea’s Jeju–Seoul corridor leading global rankings
Private Welsh island with 19th-century fort listed for sale at over £3 million
Sam Altman challenges Elon Musk with plans for Neuralink rival
Australia to Recognize the State of Palestine at UN Assembly
The Collapse of the Programmer Dream: AI Experts Now the Real High-Earners
Armenia and Azerbaijan to Sign US-Brokered Framework Agreement for Nakhchivan Corridor
British Labour Government Utilizes Counter-Terrorism Tools for Social Media Monitoring Against Legitimate Critics
WhatsApp Deletes 6.8 Million Scam Accounts Amid Rising Global Fraud
Texas Residents Face Water Restrictions While AI Data Centers Consume Millions of Gallons
India Rejects U.S. Tariff Threat, Defends Russian Oil Purchases
United States Establishes Strategic Bitcoin Reserve and Digital Asset Stockpile
Thousands of Private ChatGPT Conversations Accidentally Indexed by Google
China Tightens Mineral Controls, Curtailing Critical Inputs for Western Defence Contractors
JPMorgan and Coinbase Unveil Partnership to Let Chase Cardholders Buy Crypto Directly
British Tourist Dies Following Hair Transplant in Turkey, Police Investigate
WhatsApp Users Targeted in New Scam Involving Account Takeovers
Trump Deploys Nuclear Submarines After Threats from Former Russian President Medvedev
Germany’s Economic Breakdown and the Return of Militarization: From Industrial Collapse to a New Offensive Strategy
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
×