Not only were jobs advertised from January to June this year in Dorset the highest on record, but those for carers and office assistants overtook nurses and software assistants as the most in demand.

Dorset Local Enterprise Partnership’s latest market report also found that customer service, chefs, cleaners and kitchen staff continue to be in demand as the tourism and hospitality revival was further boosted by the favourable weather conditions.

In ‘accommodation and food service’ there were 170 per cent more vacancies in 2022 and ‘education’ saw 110 per cent increase.

Professionals such as project, account and financial managers, lawyers and accountants also remain highly sought after. High skilled roles (managers, professional and associate professional roles) that are typically occupied by college and university graduates accounted for 48 per cent of the demand in Dorset.

This reflects the strong growth in mid-skilled (particularly for admin and care workers) and lower-skilled roles (particularly elementary) in Dorset, where the most labour shortages are currently being reported, as well as the lowest salaries and highest volatility.

In caring service occupations, demand increased by over 540 per cent over the past decade and elementary occupations grew by over 400 per cent, clearly suggesting demand far outweighs supply and indicating acute recruitment challenges and competition amongst employers.

Overall employment in Dorset fell, but rates remained favourable compared to the national reference. Unemployment, however, reached 4.9 per cent – and exceeded national rates for the first time on record. The number of economically inactive people who want a job fell by seven per cent in Dorset versus two per cent nationally.

Rebecca Davies, head of Enterprise, Skills and Industry, said: “This report clearly outlines both the economic and staffing challenges our key industries in Dorset continue to be exposed to.

“The local economy was worth £709 million less in 2020 with tourism and hospitality declining by almost 40 per cent as a result of the pandemic disruptions, while later recovery has been stifled by the lack of available workforce to meet the unprecedented labour demand of over 54,000 vacancies across sectors over the first half of the year.

“The recruitment conundrum continues to be at the top of our local agenda as unemployment in Dorset has doubled and exceeded national rates for the first time on record and the number of economically inactive people has reached 88,000. Vital sectors across Dorset (food production, construction, hospitality, health and social care) continue to be threatened by growing skills shortages and high staff turnover.

“Amongst these challenges there are many opportunities for Dorset, particularly around developing a smart, highly skilled workforce that makes the most of latest labour market developments. Despite the overall decline of the economy, productivity per hour worked has increased and new research from Zoom and Indeed also revealed that Bournemouth ranks 14th among the UK’s top 25 hiring hotspots for remote workers.”