New research indicates a decline in entry-level hiring within the UK's technology and finance sectors. Payroll jobs for individuals aged 18–24 in the tech industry have decreased by approximately 30% over the three years leading up to late 2025. Employment for IT professionals aged 16–24 dropped by roughly 20% between 2022 and 2025.
Specific roles have seen sharper declines, with entry-level software engineering hiring falling by 27% in a single year and tech graduate positions dropping by 46% year-on-year. Major accounting firms are also reducing their intake: KPMG cut its graduate recruitment by 29%, and Deloitte by 18%.
According to the Institute for Fiscal Studies, the share of young people in payrolled employment fell by 4.3 percentage points between late 2022 and late 2025, affecting approximately 330,000 people. The NEET rate, representing those not in education, employment, or training, has reached 12–13%, totaling nearly 1 million young people.
Analysts from the Office for National Statistics and Morgan Stanley attribute these trends to the automation of routine tasks by AI, alongside rising employer costs. Morgan Stanley research suggests that UK firms reduced staff by 8% due to AI by 2025, a trend noted as more pronounced in the UK than in other global markets.
