Summer 2025 hiring trends in Engineering & Manufacturing
As we move through Q2 of 2025, the UK’s engineering and manufacturing sectors are seeing steady momentum in hiring activity. Encouraged by a relatively stable economic outlook, investment into infrastructure and defence and a renewed focus on productivity, many employers are now looking to actively strengthen their technical teams. But while hiring demand is high, sourcing the right talent is becoming more challenging, especially in the most technically demanding roles.
At Employment Solutions, we’ve been working closely with our clients across the engineering and manufacturing sectors to understand the latest shifts in the job market, the roles in highest demand and how businesses can adapt to stay competitive. The trends we’re seeing offer a clear picture of both opportunity and complexity for businesses competing for skilled professionals.
Market conditions – context for Q3 2025
Following a mixed but ultimately positive second quarter, the UK economy is showing signs of cautious optimism, with modest growth projections supported by increased government investment in defence, infrastructure and green energy initiatives. This has given businesses the confidence to invest in new employees.
Legislative changes, such as the uplift in the National Minimum and Living Wage which has led to pay increases across lower and mid-level roles, as well as tighter scrutiny around CSCS (Construction Skills Certification Scheme) compliance on construction-related sites, has added pressure to wages.
We’ve also seen that salary adjustments across key technical and specialist roles, particularly where demand is high and talent is short, has led to companies adjusting not only salaries but also recruitment expectations to reflect the harsh realities of a highly competitive labour market where skilled professionals have more leverage.
Key summer hiring trends
Over the last few months, several roles have emerged as clear priorities for our clients. We’ve seen increased and growing demand for:
Maintenance engineers – particularly those who are multi-skilled in both mechanical and electrical systems
Electrical design engineers – required to support projects in automation and infrastructure
Control systems engineers – reflecting the continued investment into smart manufacturing, digital transformation and process efficiency
Welders and fabricators – vital for high-volume production, bespoke manufacturing and heavy engineering environments.
While contract roles still feature heavily in specialist project-based work, we’ve seen a marked increase in permanent vacancies this year. This suggests that many employers are focused on investing in long-term capability and want to build more resilient teams after a period of uncertainty.
Growth sectors
Much of our clients’ hiring activity is being driven by three key areas:
Defence – increased government spending, rising to 2.5% of GDP by 2027, and an increased political commitment to UK-based supply chains means that defence-related engineering roles have surged, particularly for skilled engineers. Candidates with the required security clearance, or the potential to obtain it, are especially in demand, intensifying the competition for their services.
Automation – automation continues to reshape operations across many manufacturing environments, modernising production lines and digitising systems. Consequently there’s growing demand for engineers with experience in control systems, PLC programming, robotics and industrial software.
Sustainable manufacturing – the push towards greener, more efficient processes is creating new opportunities in sustainable manufacturing. We’re seeing more roles related to energy-efficiency, low-carbon engineering and environmentally responsible production processes.
Dual-skilled professionals – there is also growing interest in dual-skilled professionals – those people who combine traditional engineering expertise with digital capabilities. Whether it’s an electrical engineer with PLC programming skills or a fabricator who can interpret CAD files and automate CNC operations, these hybrid profiles are becoming a key differentiator in today’s job market and are especially valuable.
Employer challenges
Despite strong demand for skilled professionals, our clients are still facing a number of hiring challenges:
Skills shortages – roles in automation, welding, fabrication and maintenance are all proving increasingly difficult to fill. This impacts the nuclear and defence sectors which are struggling to find qualified professionals quickly enough to meet demand
Salary expectations – as candidates become more aware of their value in a competitive market, pay expectations are rising. Clients are responding by offering more competitive packages, not just in terms of take home pay but also in benefits, working conditions and development opportunities
Competition for talent – many experienced candidates are now prioritising roles that offer flexibility, long-term security, hybrid working and career development, making it harder for clients to attract and retain the best talent
Clients are also under pressure to deliver projects quickly and efficiently, which means there’s less time and motivation to train up junior or less experienced candidates. The focus, therefore, is on candidates who are job-ready and in demand and adds yet another layer of competition for clients.
Our response
At Employment Solutions, we’re helping our clients to refine their hiring strategies in response to these challenges so they can remain competitive.
Tailored hiring campaigns – we’re working closely with our clients to define their exact technical and cultural requirements and tailor strategies that attract the right candidates in a highly competitive sector.
Candidate engagement – engagement is key so we focus on building strong relationships with our candidate network across the UK. In this way they remain informed, interested and engaged with roles that they’re interested in and that suit their aspirations.
Data-led market advice – our real-time salary surveys and market data give our clients a realistic view of current pay rates, helping them to remain competitive and make informed, attractive offers to secure top talent quickly.
Above all, we’re advising our clients to act with urgency when it comes to hiring for high-demand roles. Skilled professionals, especially those with niche skills, are not staying on the market for long and if a business takes too long to make a decision, it’s likely to miss out.
Looking ahead – preparing for Q4 and beyond
Looking ahead to the end of 2025, we expect demand for engineering and manufacturing talent to remain strong, particularly in sectors such as digital transformation, defence and sustainable production.
There will be a growing emphasis on training and upskilling, especially in organisations which are looking ahead to longer-term workforce planning.
We predict that there will also be continued pressure on hiring teams to streamline their processes and considerably shorten their time-to-hire.
Our advice to businesses is to start preparing now. Reviewing your hiring strategy, benchmarking your salary offerings, clarifying career pathways and ensuring that your internal processes are ready to move quickly when the right candidate comes along will put you in the strongest position to attract and retain skilled professionals.
Final thoughts
This summer presents both opportunities and challenges for engineering and manufacturing employers. Our clients within these sectors are hiring with intent, but the battle for talent is intensifying. The market is active, competitive and rapidly evolving and the need for smarter, more responsive hiring strategies has never been greater.
By working with Employment Solutions you can stay informed, remain flexible and navigate the current challenging landscape with confidence. We can help you position yourself to attract and secure the talent you need to succeed in a fast-moving market.
If you’re ready to improve our hiring strategy, benchmark your pay rates or access top technical talent, contact us.
