Year of the slog: Workers face 'longer hours, squeeze on pay and insecurity' as scramble for jobs intensifies in 2013

Workers and job seekers alike face a bleak struggle to improve their circumstances in 2013, according to employment experts.
People in work can expect longer hours, a continued squeeze on pay and fewer jobs being created in a 'hard year of slog', says Dr John Philpott of the Jobs Economist consultancy.
Meanwhile, the unemployed will find it harder to get a job in 2013 as the 'scramble' for work gets fiercer, predicts a separate report from recruitment website totaljobs.

Fierce competition: Unemployed people will find it harder to get a job in 2013 as the 'scramble' for work gets fiercer

Philpott predicted that job insecurity will remain high, with workers maintaining a 'grin and bear it' attitude.
Pay deals will continue to be affected by unemployment, with increases lagging behind inflation, leading to wage cuts for workers, he said.

Unemployment is forecast to increase by 120,000 to 2.63 million in 2013 because growth in the workforce will exceed the number of jobs being created, said Philpott.
Youth unemployment is forecast to fall below 900,000, while long-term unemployment will remain broadly the same.

MANAGERS CRAVE WORK-LIFE BALANCE

Most managers plan to stay in their jobs next year, although many want to improve their work-life balance, according to a study by the Institute of Leadership & Management.
Only one in seven want to look for a new position in the new year, while one in 20 plan to set up their own business, its survey of 1,300 managers found.
Almost a third of managers will try to improve their work-life balance next year, and a similar number want to develop leadership skills, the Institute of Leadership & Management study also found.
Charles Elvin, chief executive of the institute, said: 'It seems managers' primary focus for the new year will be to retain their current jobs rather than seeking new ones. This is a clear reflection of the current economic climate.
'Businesses mustn't be complacent though, and they need to ensure they keep their workers motivated and engaged through 2013.'
Almost three out of five said they will stay with their current employer next year.

Philpott expected only limited support from workers in private firms for union opposition to public sector cuts.
'Our jobs outlook for 2013 is relatively optimistic in that we expect only a modest rise in unemployment. However, the fact that this can be considered good news merely underlines the harsh reality of current economic austerity,' he said.
'GDP may grow somewhat faster but 2013 will be another year of hard slog, with longer hours for those lucky enough to have jobs and a further squeeze on living standards for workers and the jobless alike.
'Hard pressed private sector workers are likely to keep their heads down and get on with the job rather than actively stand shoulder to shoulder with striking public sector trade unionists.
'Workplace disgruntlement in the private sector will instead take the form of simmering distrust of bosses, especially those who adopt the trendy management speak mantra of "employee engagement" while piling the pressure on overstretched staff,' he said.
Totaljobs said jobs have been created this year in most regions of the UK, but there was also an increase in applications.
The labour market 'loosened' in 2012, encouraging those already in work to look for a new challenge, while the jobless were having to apply for more posts in their search for work, said its report.
'With changes coming to benefit payments, it is likely the scramble for work is getting fiercer,' it said.
The number of jobs increased by 5 per cent this year, boosted by the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee, alongside a drop in inflation, according to totaljobs.
The biggest increases were in transport and logistics firms, while jobs were lost in the public sector and the hospitality sector, its study found.
The number of applicants per vacancy has jumped by 12 per cent this year to a national average of 18, rising to 25 in some areas such as London. Almost 50 people were chasing some administrative jobs and 36 in retail, it was found.

Stress: Almost a third of managers will try to improve their work-life balance next year

The capital was hit by a collapse in the number of catering and hospitality jobs despite the success of the Olympics, said Totaljobs, adding that Wales had been affected by public sector cuts.
John Salt, director of totaljobs.com, said: 'For much of 2012, the labour market was heading in the right direction with job growth and falls in unemployment. However, whilst on the surface things looked healthier, dig a little deeper and it became clear that we have been merely storing up problems for the future.
'The reality is that a great deal of the jobs created have been part-time and low paid, and many of those that have been taken off the unemployment roll have in fact just gone into government training schemes rather than paid work.
'With the eurozone seemingly resolute in its determination not to take the steps necessary to avoid economic meltdown and significant falls in manufacturing, the heralded labour market recovery petered out by the final quarter of the year.'
The labour market will remain 'pretty stagnant' in the coming months, totaljobs predicted.

• The number of people in work could reach a historic milestone of 30million before the next general election, according to a study of the labour market by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development. Latest figures showed there were 29.6million people in employment in the quarter to October, an increase of almost half a million on a year earlier.