I feel I start my newsletters with an apology, and this one is no different. I’ve failed to publish an update for some time. If you’ve spoken to me lately, I’ve had quite a lot of things outside of work taking up my time. However, the only way is up - and normality has returned now.

I also feel I discuss a lot of concerns in my newsletters. More a cloud on a sunny day than a ray of sunshine, but the backdrop of a challenging economy for many financial and professional services firms probably leads me to be more melancholy. Again apologising, I did jinx things a bit. At an event before Christmas, I said I was optimistic because, like it or loathe it, three of the world’s largest economies had been through elections and governments had clear mandates. We then got the Employer’s NI rise, the Employment Rights Bill, and that “beautiful” word, tariffs.

Unless it is a free trade deal, any trade deal involving tariffs will bring friction, which increases costs. Others will disagree and that’s completely fine, and some are better qualified to comment. Friction can of course create jobs (think compliance), but in my view the net effect will be a weaker employment market. Employer’s NI is deeply inconvenient for medium sized firms, who aren’t able to pass on the costs, and again I think will weaken employment. However, of the three of my concerns, the Employment Rights Bill worries me the most. It’s styled as a “New Deal for Working People”. I think that phrase is Westminster speak that’s supposed to sound cool, but the vibes are so 1970’s that if were a meal it would be a prawn cocktail, steak with half a flat mushroom, and black forest gateaux – a treat which leaves you with acid reflux. In my view, it’s neither good for workers (and workers’ rights are super important and not to be scoffed at), it’s not good for businesses, but it may get the Deputy PM a few votes or kudos with some members of her party.

It’s not so long ago that the UK was struck by the asteroid that was the Global Financial Crisis. It was immensely painful for the average family, but unemployment remained relatively low. It’s hard to argue that zero hours contracts and a two-year window before unfair dismissal could be claimed didn’t help in some way. The UK was the jobs engine of Europe and, if the last few years have proven one thing, it’s that unforeseen events happen - frequently.

If you’re asking people to risk their own capital to create jobs, you also need to give them some control over said jobs. Therefore, government mandating flexible working day one rights seems like overreach. For clarity, at Fram we have hybrid working, it works brilliantly (we have a super conscientious team which helps). In short, if you’re a dreadful employer, who is out of the kilter with the market, people won’t join you or will leave your employment. From the work we do, employers are slowly returning to offices and this Bill seems to completely ignore the situation on the ground. The Bill will make life more difficult for graduates to get jobs and firms will look to automate as many roles as possible. I hope to be proven wrong.

Back to the day job. Asset Management had seen signs of an upturn in hiring. Firms had worked hard on product development and distribution, which created more activity, but that seems to have died down. Many firms are scratching their heads and are hoping for an upturn in the equity markets to get some growth, as inflows are hard to come by. I feel people in the industry are a bit flat and there seems to be a lot of “juniorisation” of roles when firms are rehiring. We all know it’s cyclical, but it’s hard to hold onto that thought for many who’ve been working in a challenging environment for two years.

Other areas though are showing more signs of life. Our Debt & Capital Solutions practice getting busier as long predicted falls in interest rates finally seem to upon us. The challenged property market may eventually get building again, there will be clarity on car finance commissions soon, but regardless, debt solutions are getting ever more complex and firms need advice. Our wealth management practice is seeing this. While regulatory changes have meant firms have had to hire more people, we also feel wealth managers are benefitting from an increasingly complex world and the need for advice.

With current levels of unpredictability, we are seeing the use of fixed term contractors more, which makes sense. Also, a lot of work at the moment is about repositioning and this lends itself well to contractors.

I do have a concern around stagnating careers. There are lots of good quality people, who are now classed as long term unemployed, but there are many in work where opportunities for development are limited. When I was 25, two years seemed like a lifetime, many younger workers have been “stuck” in their current roles for at least two years, yet their personal lives are moving on, and it’s most likely holding back personal aspirations. However, I’m sure those out of work for 12 months are looking at themselves wondering what’s wrong with them. I can’t stress it enough, it’s the market - and markets can change for the better at any time.  We do get asked a lot about is it better to take any job or to wait for the right thing. It’s a personal choice, I like to be busy and would take the view I can learn something from every new experience. I can’t speak for all hirers, but I hope others would take that view. Pragmatically speaking, we all have bills to pay and I can’t think of a trade or job that would put off anyone hiring you.

When someone is out of work for a significant period of time, they start to play around with their CV. Again, write something concise, neat, start with your most recent role at the top, do a nice one paragraph personal story, and put in what you achieved, and then don’t keep changing it or lengthening the document. I’m sure most people’s CVs are just fine, and when the market turns you’ll see what I mean.

Please keep looking at the knowledge section of our website, which we share many of our industry specific insights. We also have a jobs board. Not all of the roles we work on go on there, the more senior roles can sometimes be confidential etc. We also have a good referral scheme.