​Talking to clients, employers and candidates across the region, one thing is clear: the North East jobs market is a mixed picture.

The good news. Nissan has confirmed a £170 million investment at its Sunderland plant to build the new Kicks e-POWER alongside the Qashqai, Juke and LEAF. It secures around 6,000 existing jobs in the plant's 40th year on Wearside. It also supports work for the wider supply chain of component suppliers and logistics services across the region who depend on the Sunderland plant. North East Mayor Kim McGuinness called it "a £170m vote of confidence in North East car making". https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/nissan-sunderland-170m-investment-produce-34623560

The very sad news. Administrators confirmed that glass manufacturer Clayton Glass is closing its County Durham site in Stanley as part of 290 redundancies across three UK sites. The reasons are familiar to many local manufacturers: high energy and raw material costs, a long spell of soft demand and squeezed margins.https://www.chroniclelive.co.uk/news/north-east-news/administrators-confirm-nearly-300-jobs-34653311

What the data says. The latest KPMG and REC Report on Jobs shows permanent hiring rising for the first time since late 2022. Engineering is one of only two sectors where permanent vacancies are growing, and the North of England, including the North East, saw the fastest growth in temporary staffing of any UK region.

There was also an increase in the number of candidates seeking new employment, with redundancies being a key contributing factor.

That fits with what we're seeing at MTrec: continued high demand for skilled engineers across all disciplines, and regional employers needing temporary workers at short notice.

If you've been affected by the Clayton Glass closure or other redundancies in the region, please do get in touch with the MTrec team. We're working with a huge variety of manufacturers across the region who need exactly the skills you've built over the course of your career, and we'd be delighted to help you find your next role, or provide CV writing advice, interview preparation and anything else we can do to help. Please contact the office on 0191 242 5600 or email technical@mtrec.co.uk