How many vacancies are there in the UK Wholesale & retail sector?

The UK Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles sector had 86,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026, down 2,000 on the previous quarter and down 12,000 (12.2%) on a year earlier. These are real, seasonally adjusted ONS VACS02 estimates (SIC 2007 section G).

What is the Gera Vacancy Index for Wholesale & retail?

The Gera Vacancy Index for Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles is 91 (UK = 100), meaning the sector has a looser labour market than the UK economy. It is computed as the sector's ONS ratio of 2 vacancies per 100 employee jobs divided by the UK figure of 2.2, times 100 — a transparent, reproducible calculation.

Is hiring getting harder or easier in Wholesale & retail?

In Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles, the vacancy ratio moved from 2.2 vacancies per 100 jobs a year ago to 2 now. Vacancies went from 98,000 to 86,000 over the year (-12.2%). All figures are real ONS VACS02 estimates; none are modelled.

GeraJobs / UK Job Vacancies by Sector / Wholesale & retail

Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles — UK Job Vacancies

The UK Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles sector had 86,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026 — 2 per 100 employee jobs, a Gera Vacancy Index of 91 (UK = 100), below the UK average. Real ONS VACS02 data.

How many job vacancies are there in the UK Wholesale & retail sector?

As of March to May 2026 (ONS VACS02), the UK Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles sector had 86,000 unfilled job vacancies — down 12.2% on a year earlier — at 2 vacancies per 100 employee jobs. That is a Gera Vacancy Index of 91 (UK = 100), below the UK average. Real ONS data, OGL v3.0; re-dated monthly.

Source:ONS Vacancies and jobs in the UK — Vacancies by industry (VACS02)·As of March to May 2026 · updated monthly · last refreshed 18 June 2026

Gera Vacancy Index

Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles ranks #2 of 18 UK sectors by vacancy volume. 2 vacancies per 100 employee jobs vs the UK's 2.2 — a looser labour market than the UK economy.

How this is calculated

Wholesale & retail vs the UK

Measure	Wholesale & retail	UK (all sectors)
Unfilled vacancies (March to May 2026)	86,000	707,000
Vacancies per 100 employee jobs	2	2.2
Gera Vacancy Index (UK = 100)	91	100
Change on previous quarter	down 2,000	—
Change year-on-year	-12.2% (-12,000)	—

A year ago (March to May 2025) the Wholesale & retail ratio was 2.2 vacancies per 100 jobs, on 98,000 vacancies.

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UK sector

Unfilled vacancies

86,000

Per 100 employee jobs

Gera Vacancy Index

Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles has 2 vacancies per 100 employee jobs, versus 2.2 for the whole UK — a Gera Vacancy Index of 91 (UK = 100), so a looser, easier-to-hire market than the UK average. Vacancies are down 12.2% year-on-year.

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Wholesale & retail vacancies — FAQ

How many vacancies are there in the UK Wholesale & retail sector?: The UK Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles sector had 86,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026, down 2,000 on the previous quarter and down 12,000 (12.2%) on a year earlier. These are real, seasonally adjusted ONS VACS02 estimates (SIC 2007 section G).
What is the Gera Vacancy Index for Wholesale & retail?: The Gera Vacancy Index for Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles is 91 (UK = 100), meaning the sector has a looser labour market than the UK economy. It is computed as the sector's ONS ratio of 2 vacancies per 100 employee jobs divided by the UK figure of 2.2, times 100 — a transparent, reproducible calculation.
Is hiring getting harder or easier in Wholesale & retail?: In Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles, the vacancy ratio moved from 2.2 vacancies per 100 jobs a year ago to 2 now. Vacancies went from 98,000 to 86,000 over the year (-12.2%). All figures are real ONS VACS02 estimates; none are modelled.

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Related on GeraJobs

UK job vacancies — all sectors ranked — and how the Gera Vacancy Index is calculated.
Gera Pay Index — UK salary by region — how pay varies across the UK, from real ONS ASHE data.
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Source: ONS Vacancies and jobs in the UK — Vacancies by industry (VACS02) (SIC 2007 section G, series JP9M / JPA7). Figures are March to May 2026, seasonally adjusted, 3-month rolling, released 18 June 2026. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (OGL v3). The Gera Vacancy Index for Wholesale & retail trade; repair of motor vehicles is computed by GeraJobs from these figures; no figure is modelled or interpolated.