Jobs market set for happy new year

The employment outlook is at its strongest level since before the recession, although many new jobs are part-time or temporary, according to a new study.

Employment firm Manpower said a growing number of firms plan to take on staff in the new year.

A survey of 2,100 employers showed that more are intending to hire workers than make redundancies.

Mark Cahill, managing director of Manpower, said: "As we head into the new year, the remarkable resilience of the UK labour market looks set to continue."

But the study showed that a relatively small number of businesses are planning to expand, with most firms continuing to "sit on their hands".

Mr Cahill added: "Undoubtedly these are good figures and should bring some much-needed Christmas cheer to the economy, but underlying this is a more complex picture. There has been a seismic shift in the nature of employment, with many of the new roles created being temporary or part-time positions.

"Whilst workers can expect a lower risk of losing their job, the flip side of this is that there is now a higher risk of having to work reduced hours or seeing a wage cut in real terms."

The research was published ahead of new unemployment figures on Wednesday.