Hiring in and around industrial automation is tight, but the pinch is skills, not appetite. Make UK counts 55,000 unfilled long-term vacancies in UK manufacturing in 2025, costing the economy £6bn in lost output every year. That gap sits directly over the machine build workforce: the fitters, wirers and commissioning engineers who turn a design into a working line.
The wider labour market is cautious. The Low Pay Commission describes conditions as 'low hire, low fire', with weaker recruitment, only slight increases in redundancies and vacancies below pre-pandemic levels. Yet demand for genuine technical skill holds up. The ONS reports that the largest volume increase in vacancies from August to October 2025 was in professional, scientific and technical activities, up by 5,000.
Automation is also reshaping the work itself. Make UK finds 59% of manufacturers cite automation and 50% cite wider digitalisation as trends changing jobs and skills needs, with 74% expecting demand for cognitive skills to rise by 2030. Integrators feel this first: every project needs people who can build the machine and understand the control system behind it.
Integrators are backing multi-skilled fitters: mechanical build engineers who can also wire a panel, and electrical fitters comfortable with pneumatics and mechanical assembly. The prize is someone who reads a GA drawing, builds to it, wires to schematic and stays on for commissioning and site install. That blend is scarce, which is why it commands attention.
The entry-level pipeline is thin, and the data shows it. GOV.UK reports that in engineering, entry-level hiring has fallen to -19% while senior hiring sits at -10%, a nine-percentage-point gap. Fewer juniors coming through today means fewer experienced fitters tomorrow, so experienced people are hard to replace.
There is a clear route back to supply. Across AI-adjacent roles, GOV.UK notes apprenticeships have risen from 3% of hires in 2020 to 19% in 2025, a signal that grow-your-own works when the external market is dry. And engineering stays largely home-grown: the vast majority of new engineering hires come from the resident labour force, indicating low reliance on international recruitment. That means UK integrators compete for the same regional pool, so speed and clarity win.
Start with the drawing, not the job title. Define what the person must build, wire and commission, then test for it: a short practical, a schematic to talk through, a commissioning scenario. That tells you more than a CV keyword ever will, and it respects the applicant's time.
Move quickly. In a home-grown market where most engineering hires come from the resident labour force, the best fitters are known locally and rarely wait around. Line up interviews in days, give a same-week decision and be specific about the projects, the site work and the kit they will use.
Build your own supply too. With Make UK reporting 55,000 long-term vacancies costing £6bn a year and 74% of manufacturers expecting cognitive skills demand to rise by 2030, an apprenticeship route and structured upskilling protect you against the next shortage. Hire for attitude and core fitting skill, then train the control-system depth around it.
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