New job listing fell for the second month in a row in November, according to survey data from the Recruitment and Employment Confederation.
The research shows a drop of 14.4% in new job adverts posted between October and November, and an 11.2% drop in overall active job listings, The Times reports.
It comes as businesses react with uncertainty to the chancellor's budget and legislation giving new rights to employees.
Employment is areas such as retail normally rises in the build-up to Christmas, with the drop suggesting companies may have held off on hiring until the tax situation became clearer when the budget was announced on November 26.
Businesses are also still awaiting the final Employment Rights Bill which, although watered down at the end of November, remains in the House of Lords where unfair dismissal payout caps have been a sticking point.
Recruitment and Employment Confederation chief executive Neil Carberry said: “While the budget was by no means an easy listen for companies, the overall picture was more benign for most sectors than feared.
"We can hope that this, along with the more pragmatic tone the government has struck on the Employment Rights Bill over the past month, will help get the hiring market moving again.”