Number of job vacancies 'rises across UK'

The number of job vacancies across the UK rose slightly last month, but the pay on offer fell, a report has said.

Employment agency Reed said 1% more jobs were offered by firms through its service in May compared with April.

At the same time, it said the average wage available declined by 4.2% to £31,800 in May, from £33,200 in April.

Job demand rose most in the charity and voluntary sectors, followed by marketing, public relations, legal and secretarial.

Reed said about 90,000 jobs were offered though it in total last month.

Martin Warnes, managing director of reed.co.uk, said the increase in jobs available came despite the disruption of the general election and concerns about the impact of government debt across Europe.

"While it is good that the job demand trend is upwards again, recovery remains fragile," he said.

"In spite of [Chancellor] George Osborne's hopes, the private sector has yet to demonstrate it is taking up the slack in advance of public sector cuts.

"However, although employers are still suffering from cost constraints, some are seizing this opportunity to recruit talented people at high value to help grow their businesses."