North-east councils are hosting special courses in how to apply for local authority jobs after a significant rise in applications.
Pilot workshops held in November by Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council were oversubscribed and three further sessions scheduled for January are all full and have waiting lists.
The city authority has reported an increase of almost 119% in the number of job applications in the past 12 months, while Aberdeenshire has seen a 57% increase.
In 2015, Aberdeen City Council received 18,391 applications from 659 adverts, giving an average of almost 28 applications per advert – this has increased rapidly in 2016, with more than 40,000 applications received from the 1,000 adverts placed, giving an average of 40 applications per vacancy.
Meanwhile, Aberdeenshire Council has handled 32,000 applications from the 2,459 adverts placed to date in 2016, giving an average of 13 applicants per vacancy, an increase from eight the previous year.
City council leader Jenny Laing said: “The economic challenges facing the north-east during the downturn in the energy sector are clear.
“The employment landscape has changed significantly over the past two years, with the oil and gas industry contracting and the number of people seeking employment growing as a result.
“As a local authority, we are committed to supporting the energy sector and see a long-term future for that and a diverse range of other industries, with the potential for job creation at the heart of our regional economic strategy.
“Aberdeen City Council also has an important role as a major employer in our own right and we take that responsibility seriously.
“Given the transformation that is taking place and the ambitions for the city, it is an attractive environment to work in with an opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of the people and fabric of the place.”
Alison Evison, co-leader of Aberdeenshire Council, added: “Our recent successes in recruitment certainly demonstrate that partnership working has enormous benefits.
“There are many opportunities open to job-seekers within both local authorities, and it is reassuring to see how many people consider Aberdeenshire to be an employer of choice.
“I commend the recruitment team for the work they have done to promote Aberdeenshire Council and raise the profile of this organisation in the jobs market.”
