Widespread redundancies and fears over job losses has led to an influx of candidates knocking on the doors of staffing agencies — leading to a need for extra staff to deal with the demand.

Stuart Aikman, infrastructure and marketing manager at multisector recruiter Aspirare, told Recruiter the company had hired two new administrative staff after an estimated 20-25% increase in applications and an extra 40% in the construction sector alone.

“We are getting an influx of candidates registering with us,” he said. “Candidates are still our customers and we feel additional support staff allows us to deal with the extra applications effectively. The biggest complaint about the recruitment industry is that candidates don’t get the response from agencies they deserve.”

Aikman said the extra staff, who bring the company’s number of employees to 13, have also helped free up the consultants, so that they can concentrate on finding placements for extra candidates.

Sandra Smart, director of generalist recruiter Smart Start Recruitment, told Recruiter her workload in dealing with applications had increased dramatically as local firms make redundancies and workers fear for their jobs.

“I interview all of the candidates personally and it takes anything from 45 minutes to an hour and a half to register someone, depending on the type of work they are looking for,” she explained.

Smart told Recruiter that candidates now had to wait for a week or two to be interviewed, as opposed to scheduling an interview the next day. The agency’s out of office hours session on Thursday evening and Saturday mornings are also fully booked. “Before we would only have one or two appointments, but now we are full,” she said. “We have people registering with us who are worried that they are going to lose their jobs. They’re taking steps to be prepared.”

The company has also hired a temporary member of staff in a sales role to find vacancies for the extra candidates and give the consultants time to complete the applications.

However, recruiters with highly automated application processes have been able to cope with the hike in candidate registrations without adapting processing methods.

Tim Asti, director of professional and technical recruitment UK and Northern Ireland for Kelly Services, told Recruiter that processing applications online had meant the company could absorb the extra demand. “We are receiving around 10-15% extra applications [since the downturn in the labour market] as companies make redundancies. However, we haven’t had to hire anyone in terms of our own support systems.”

Asti added that having direct contact with as many applicants as possible was a crucial aspect of the business model.

“People can register their CVs online, but we are a people business and it is important we have that dialogue with the applicants. The real skill is getting the recruiters to understand the need of the applicant.”

Are you experiencing a trend in your sector? Let us know at [email protected]