8 per cent more jobs on SEEK than 12 months ago

New job advertisements on SEEK rose 8 per cent this February when compared to the same period last year.

Michael Ilczynski, Managing Director for SEEK Australia and New Zealand, said this February advertising on SEEK was fuelled by continued job ad uplift in South Australia [SA] and Victoria [VIC], as well as the recovery of advertising in Queensland [QLD] and Western Australia [WA].

“Advertising on SEEK has increased across all the states and territories this February, with South Australia enjoying the largest jump in job advertising, up 21 per cent year on year [y/y], followed by Victoria, up 10 per cent y/y,” Ilczynski said

“It is very encouraging to see job ads on SEEK continue to rise in Queensland [up 9.3 per cent] and WA [up 7.5 per cent] as these states were previously hardest hit by the mining downturn.

“Across Queensland and WA, the industry offering the most job opportunities on SEEK this February was Trades & Services.

“The average advertised annual salary on SEEK for Trades & Services in Queensland was $62,573, while in WA the average advertised annual salary was $71,266,” Ilczynski said.

The most sought after Trades & Service professionals in Queensland this February were:

  • Automotive Mechanics
  • Electricians
  • Labourers

While in WA, the most in-demand Trades & Service professionals were:

  • Automotive Mechanics
  • Fitters, Turners & Machinists
  • Electricians

“In New South Wales [NSW], Australia's largest labour market, advertising on SEEK was up 5.7 per cent y/y this February,” Ilczynski added.

New job ads on SEEK in other states and territories this February:

  • Australian Capital Territory [ACT], up 9.9 per cent y/y
  • Northern Territory [NT], up 4.9 per cent y/y
  • Tasmania [TAS], up 4.8 per cent y/y

MINING, RESOUCES & ENERGY

At a national level, the Mining, Resources & Energy industry enjoyed the greatest job ad growth of all industries across Australia, up 66 per cent y/y this February.

“A sustained hiring trend we're seeing at present, is a demand for multi-skilled mining professionals that also possess ‘softer skills,' such as team leadership and communication. Hirers are looking for people that fulfil duties beyond the specific job requirements,” said Ilczynski.

“In WA and QLD, the largest mining states, job ads on SEEK for the Mining, Resources & Energy sector were up 57 per cent and 69 per cent respectively this February,” Ilczynski added.

Across both the states it was mining engineers and mining operators that were in the highest demand. In WA alone there are over 500 job opportunities live on SEEK for mining engineers.

CANDIDATE AVAILABILITY

Nationally there has been a y/y increase of 3.6 per cent in the SEEK Employment Index this February, which points to favourable conditions for job seekers as there is slightly less applications, for each role.

However, underneath this national figure there is a clear difference in candidate availability at a state and territory level.

“It was a hirer's market this January in NSW, TAS, the ACT and NT. For each job advertised there was a higher than average number of candidates applying, creating more competition for job seekers but providing hirers with a larger pool of candidates to choose from,” Ilczynski said.

“While in VIC, QLD SA and WA, there were reasonable competition conditions for job seekers and employers,” he added.

INDUSTRY FOCUS

Job ads on SEEK for Human Resources [HR] & Recruitment industry grew 5 per cent this February when compared to 12 months earlier.

Across Australia, the most in-demand HR and Recruitment professionals on SEEK and their average advertised salaries on SEEK were:

  • Generalist HR professionals, $87,358
  • Agency Recruitment Consultants, $71,663
  • In-house Recruitment Consultants, $79,192
  • Occupational Health & Safety Specialists, $95,445

The national average advertised annual salary on SEEK for HR and Recruitment professionals is $83,784.

“It's interesting that Generalist HR professional are the most advertised HR and Recruitment job title on SEEK this February. This could indicate that hirers are looking for multi-skilled practitioners to take part in the full spectrum of HR activities across a business, including recruitment, employee relations issues, coaching, leadership development and change management,” revealed Ilczynski.

“It's not surprising to see Recruitment Consultants [internal and external] among the top advertised HR roles on SEEK, this could indicate the Australian businesses are looking to take on more employees, which is reflected in our rising job ad volume on SEEK,” he added.

“The greatest number of job opportunities on SEEK for the HR & Recruitment professionals were seen in NSW this February, despite job ads dipping 4 per cent y/y.

“The next top states for jobs in this sector were Victoria [up 9 per cent y/y], Queensland [up 25 per cent y/y] and WA [up 3 per cent y/y],” said Ilczynski.

Employment Data Report