Two measures moving differently
Published on 16 May 2023, the bulletin reported a quarterly decline in economic inactivity for January to March 2023. At the same time, the number inactive because of long-term sickness reached a record high in the estimates then available. The overall movement therefore concealed very different experiences among people outside the labour force.
Inactivity is not interchangeable with unemployment or a ready pool of applicants. Some people are not seeking work, cannot start within the relevant period or have barriers that a vacancy advertisement cannot resolve. Our recruitment interpretation is to replace assumptions about availability with individual, consent-based conversations about the work a person wishes to consider.
Availability starts with the individual
An agency can widen its search and still exclude people through an unnecessarily demanding process. Review whether an initial conversation must happen at a fixed time, whether instructions are clear and whether an applicant can request an alternative format. Ask about recruitment needs respectfully, rather than requesting diagnoses or collecting health details without a defined purpose.
For healthcare roles, a candidate’s professional suitability and required checks remain separate from assumptions about their employment history. Agree who considers requests, how information is restricted and which questions a coordinator can answer. A return-to-work gap should prompt a fair, relevant discussion about the role, not a speculative judgement about someone’s capability.
Make the recruitment conversation accessible
Key Med can assist with candidate engagement, interview coordination and recruitment administration using an employer-approved process. Support could include offering agreed appointment choices, explaining the next stage clearly and routing individual requests to an authorised decision-maker. Medical judgements, reasonable-adjustment decisions and professional eligibility determinations stay with appropriately qualified or authorised people.
Start by mapping the steps between first response and interview attendance. Identify avoidable repetition, inaccessible communications and unclear handovers. Track requests and outcomes at an appropriate, minimised level, and agree retention rules. This creates a more considerate workflow without claiming that an outsourcing partner can resolve the health-related causes of economic inactivity.
The source material
- Labour market overview, UK: May 2023 ↗Office for National Statistics · 2023-05-16
Contains Office for National Statistics information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Retrospective briefing · Published 4 November 2026. Historical figures and measures describe their period; consult current official guidance before acting. This article provides operational context. Legal, immigration, clinical and financial decisions need the responsible organisation’s qualified advisers.
