Employer Hiring Confidence Reaches Six Year High
Renewed growth in Wellington balances employment landscape
New Zealand – 18 March 2015 – Hiring sentiment is at its highest level in six years as the demand for new hires becomes increasingly balanced across
New Zealand, according to the latest Hudson Report: Employment Trends released today[1].
A net 30.1% of employers across the country intend to increase permanent staff numbers, up two percentage points (pp)
compared to the previous quarter, and marking four consecutive quarters of employment growth.
Previously the Canterbury and Auckland regions have been key drivers of hiring demand nationally and while still
positive, this is now being supported by rising expectations in the Lower North Island where employer sentiment has shot
up 5.2pp to 22.8%, in the highest quarter on quarter increase in the region since early 2011.
“For some time both the Canterbury re-build and investment in Auckland have been leading the employment charge, however
post-Election we’re now seeing Wellington, led by the resumption of large Government transformation projects, starting
to come to the party and signalling a much more balanced hiring landscape across New Zealand,” said Roman Rogers,
Executive General Manager, Hudson New Zealand.
“While business confidence is growing in line with consumer confidence, a watchful eye is being kept on key indicators
such as inflation, commodity prices and the dollar. Employers are cautiously juggling demand in order to be competitive
and we expect incremental employment growth in the year ahead.”
Hiring intentions by region
Net hiring sentiment in the South Island remains the strongest nationally, with a net 40.3% of employers intending to
increase headcount, down 1.9pp compared to the previous quarter.
“Hiring expectations in Canterbury remain high as the region continues to deliver large property and construction
projects and roles in demand include quantity surveyors, estimators, civil engineers and project managers.”
“However, with some large insurance programmes drawing to a close, we can expect to see an influx of both technical and
office-based candidates coming onto the market at the same time. This will create opportunities for businesses to pick
up some great employees; however it is likely that the market will become even more competitive as a result.”
Employer sentiment in Upper North Island continues to increase, up 2.5pp with a net 29% of employers intending to increase head count, and up 10.3pp compared to
the same time last year.
“Investment in Auckland’s construction and manufacturing sectors continue to drive increased optimism and employment
growth in this region. Tourism is also having an impact, with fantastic summer weather and a number of major events
lifting domestic consumption,” said Rogers.
Roles in demand in Lower North Island are those linked to change management, transformation and organisational development. And, this demand may strengthen as
time goes on with plans for a Wellington ‘Super City’ currently in play[2].
Permanent & contracting hiring intentions by profession
Nationwide, Property & Construction is the profession with the strongest positive hiring sentiment (59.7%), followed by Supply Chain & Procurement (42.2%), Technical & Engineering (36.5%), Financial Services (36%), Information, Communication & Technology (35.8%), Office Support (21.3%), and Accounting & Finance (18.9%).
“We continue to see a trend in Supply Chain & Procurement toward greater efficiency and increasing productivity as organisations try to improve their margins,” said Rogers.
Overall, net contractor hiring sentiment remains constant at 14.6%, as employers continue to focus on keeping business intelligence within their organisations
and balancing an average target ratio of 75% / 25% contract versus permanent team split for projects.
Sentiment in Information, Communication & Technology remains strong across the board with net 20% hiring managers intending to increase contract headcount.
“Advancements in digital technologies continue to revolutionise the way we do business. The ability to harness these
effectively and create the personalised and tailored experiences that customers demand is becoming a key differentiator
that requires an unprecedented level of responsiveness and innovation. It is no surprise then, that we are seeing an
increase in demand for roles related to business process and enhancing the customer experience,” Rogers said.
ends