Optometrist vacancies hardest to fill

Vacancies for optometrists are the hardest in the UK to fill, with more than two thirds of postings remaining vacant for at least 60 days, according to new data from job site Indeed.

Optometrists topped the list (68.79%) of vacancies that remained unfilled on the Indeed job site for more than 60 days, ahead of solicitors (51.4%), surgeons (46.32%) and software engineers (41.8%). The role also attracted the highest average salary at £50,000, second only to software architects at £70,000.

Reacting to the findings, Luke Elias, managing director of specialist recruitment firm Vivid Optical, said: ‘I must say that I am not surprised - optometrists are few and far between. Some of the vacancies we are working on have been open for over five years and there are even some towns in the UK with six or seven optometrist positions available.’