The latest survey of job losses in archaeology shows a slight increase in the number of people in archaeological employment over the three months from April to June 2010, but a significant decline in business confidence for the forthcoming year.

The report, carried out by Landward Research Ltd on behalf of FAME and the IfA, estimates that around 6,500 people were working in professional archaeology in July 2010, an increase of 4.3% on the previous quarter. Around 3,700 were working in development-led archaeology, an increase of 7.8% on the previous quarter but still 9% below the August 2007 peak.

The proportion of businesses expecting to maintain their current staff numbers fell,  with the proportion expecting market conditions to deteriorate rising significantly. Unlike at the start of 2010, most businesses expected conditions to worsen in the next twelve months, with the overwhelming majority expecting some archaeological practices to cease trading.

Even though some employers found it difficult to recruit fieldworkers, for the fifth quarter in succession the skills needed to conduct and contribute to invasive field investigation were reported as those most frequently being lost.

The full report may be viewed here.