Spotlight on Recruiting Challenges Across Key Jersey Sectors

As an international financial hub, Jersey competes for top talent globally across financial services and beyond. However, Jersey’s small size and remote location pose unique recruitment hurdles that firms must navigate. This article explores key challenges in attracting talent to Jersey and strategies to overcome them.

Hospitality and Retail Worst Affected

The hospitality industry draws the most public attention, with the highest job vacancies at 149 and long reliance on foreign labor. COVID and Brexit delivered a ‘perfect storm’ of EU nationals departing while fewer now opt to come, forcing some businesses to limit operations.

The Jersey Hospitality Association confirmed desperate need across roles. The government itself now tugs Commonwealth ties to secure peak season staff. Retail, also heavily dependent on foreign workers, battles wage competition. Leading island retailer SandpiperCI moved staff between stores while shortening hours, but small shops lack such agility.

Health and Social Care: Impacts Visible

Health advertised 127 jobs from nurses to assistants at last count, struggling with pandemic-driven resignations like many jurisdictions. But additional factors including bullying cases left surgical staff so short-handed this autumn that non-urgent procedures required postponement. Social care needs also went unmet per recent reports, with children’s services plugging one-third of positions with agency workers averaging nearly 11 month stints — at costs reaching £2 million annually.

Government Departments: Infrastructure Understaffed

Infrastructure captured attention when its director general announced up to a quarter of roles unfilled — 60 just in engineering and transport. Property holdings saw 15 of 54 jobs vacant, delaying the Public Estate Strategy. Environment Minister John Young slammed the Inherently Flawed Target Operating Model and warned of more exits without urgent staffing remedies. Workforce limitations likewise slowed Planning and Property Holdings. Even the prison wrestles with numbers, having to implement rotational lockdowns.

Finance Sector Battling Skills Shortages

Finance faces substantial demand for specialized skills and knowledge to meet evolving regulatory, compliance, and reporting needs. However, Jersey Finance’s annual sector survey reveals an insufficient pipeline of qualified talent to fulfill vacant roles.

Over a quarter of firms (28%) attempt to address skills gaps by providing development programs for school leavers. But many must still offshore roles or leave positions open longer while lacking candidates with industry or role-specific qualifications. Recruitment specialists point to wage growth for experienced mid-career professionals like trust and fund administrators, indicating scarce talent supplies.

While most businesses expect to add local jobs long-term, shortage areas like technology, data, compliance, and communications could threaten growth if left unaddressed. Firms walk a tightrope balancing offshore and onshore capabilities while retaining localized knowledge vital to Jersey’s unique environment.

Additional Factors Affecting Finance Recruitment

Jersey’s finance workforce enjoys higher salaries than regional counterparts, with income tax caps benefiting high earners. But the island’s soaring cost of living still poses retention issues, especially for relocating specialized workers. Younger or mid-career candidates more actively evaluate compensative value aligned to local property and rental rates.

And while finance fares better than leading impacted industries like hospitality, all sectors increasingly compete for Jersey’s limited workforce. This shrinks an already small candidate pool for some financial services roles unable to transition employees from other verticals.

Victus Search: Connecting Global Expertise

As staffing challenges compound for Jersey firms, sourcing skills globally becomes essential, especially for specialized positions. At Victus Search, our experts excel at financial services recruitment across trust, fund administration, compliance and governance realms. We tap expansive networks to access professionals with niche technical qualifications and “work ready” abilities that Jersey organizations increasingly struggle locating. Contact Victus Search today to learn more about the global recruitment solutions we offer – whether you’re an employer seeking critical expertise to fuel growth ambitions or a candidate exploring new opportunities to progress your career with leading Jersey financial institutions.