The CIPD described this as a “post-election bounce back in the public sector”, which also includes a surge in hiring expectations for those in government service.
James Cockett, economist at the industry group, said it is “a welcome boost to the public sector employers and workers” but needs to be accompanied with higher productivity to be sustainable.
He added: “Improvements to people management capability and technology adoption will be needed to raise efficiency in the public sector to respond to rising demands on services and spending constraints over the longer-term.”
‘Barrier to growth’
However, he stressed the painful contrast with the Budget’s treatment of private sector workers.
“In contrast to the public sector, anticipated private sector pay awards have plateaued and are likely to face downward pressure following the increase to employer National Insurance contributions and to the National Minimum Wage announced in the Budget.
“These increased business costs are likely to act as a barrier to growth and could lead to employers offering lower pay rises, being more cautious about investing in workers’ skills or taking on new staff.”
Headcount is expected to rise fastest in healthcare and social care, according to the bosses surveyed by the CIPD, as well as in construction.
Only small rises are expected in education, while employment in public administration is expected to fall despite the sharp rise in Government spending and borrowing.
A Treasury spokesman said: “At the Budget, we set a 2pc productivity, efficiency and savings target to boost public sector productivity and are investing more than £2bn in NHS technology and digital to run essential services and drive NHS productivity improvements.
“Growth is the number one mission of the Government, and improving productivity is a key focus for securing stronger growth and improving living standards. As a central part of this, the Government is working with business and other stakeholders to develop a full industrial strategy in the spring, and will produce plans for each of the eight growth sectors as part of our promise to help them thrive”.