SEEK job ads up 9.9 per cent year on year

20 September 2016

SEEK job ads up 9.9 per cent year on year

Job advertisements on SEEK rose 9.9 per cent this August when compared to the same period last year.

Janet Faulding, General Manager for SEEK NZ, said it is encouraging to see New Zealand’s job market experiencing continued year on year growth.

“The Auckland and Wellington regions have again performed well this August, with job ads up 8.8 per cent and 10.4 per cent y/y respectively. However, the Canterbury market remains subdued post its reconstruction-driven peak in late 2014, with job ads down 7.1 per cent y/y,” Faulding said.

Helping drive this strong year on year [y/y] job growth are New Zealand’s top four advertising industries on SEEK:

• Information & Communication Technology (ICT)

• Trades & Services

• Administration & Office Support

• Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics

Information & Communication Technology

ICT remains New Zealand’s top advertising industry on SEEK this August, with 8 per cent more jobs advertised than 12 months ago.

Across Auckland, ICT jobs were up 9 per cent y/y; in Wellington they increased 5 per cent y/y. While in Canterbury, ICT job ads dipped 6 per cent y/y.

Nationally, the most in-demand ICT jobs on SEEK and their average advertised salaries this August were:

Developers/Programmers ($90,529)

Business/Systems Analysts ($90,338)

Programme & Project Management ($106,047)

Help Desk & IT Support ($55,256)

While the highest paying ICT jobs on SEEK this August and their average advertised salaries were:

Management roles ($128,097)

Architects ($126,425)

Consultants ($110,766 )

“With New Zealand’s increased demand for digital connectivity and new technology, it’s no surprise that our country’s top advertising industry on SEEK is ICT, and we expect this trend will continue” Faulding said.

Trades & Services

Job ads on SEEK for the Trades & Services Industry were up 27 per cent y/y nationally this August.

In the regions, Auckland experienced a 28 per cent y/y increase in Trades & Services job ads, while Wellington had uptick of 48 per cent y/y, but across Canterbury job ads were down 4 per cent y/y.

The top advertised jobs on SEEK nationally for Trades & Services and their average advertised salaries this August were:

Automotive Trades ($60,290)

Electricians ($69,922)

Labourers ($35,526)

Building Trades $58,325)

While the highest paying Trades & Services roles across New Zealand on SEEK and their average advertised salaries this August were:

Electricians ($69,922)

Air Conditioning & Refrigeration ($68,671)

Plumbers ($67,777)

“With our expanding population through natural growth and net migration, Trades & Service roles are in high demand across New Zealand to accommodate our rising personal, residential and commercial needs,” said Faulding.

Administration & Office Support

Job ads on SEEK for the Administration & Office Support industry were up 15 per cent y/y nationally this August.

For Auckland, Administration & Office Support job ads were up 6 per cent y/y and it was the region’s third largest advertiser on SEEK behind ICT and Manufacturing, Transport & Logics. This trend continued in Wellington with Administration & Office Support enjoying 36 per cent y/y growth and was the second highest advertiser behind ICT.

Canterbury also enjoyed ad uplift of 5 per cent y/y this August, and Administration & Office Support was among the region’s top advertisers behind Trade & Services, Construction and Engineering.

Across New Zealand, the most in demand job titles on SEEK for Administration & Office Support and their average advertised salaries this August were:

Administration Assistants ($46,755)

PA, EA & Secretarial ($59,248)

Receptionists ($42,590)

Client & Sales Administration ($49,569)

Job titles with the highest average advertised salary on SEEK for Administration & Office Support this August were:

Office Management ($60,540)

PA, EA & Secretarial ($59,248)

Record Management & Document Control ($55,201)

“It’s interesting that the Administration & Office Support industry remains one of our nation’s top performers when our recent SEEK market research[1] uncovered that Kiwis believe administration/support-based roles would not exist in New Zealand in 10 years’ time due to automation and outsourcing overseas,” revealed Faulding. “However, our data suggests that currently Kiwis still prefer the contact of real people in administration and office roles.”

Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics

Nationally, job ads on SEEK for the Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics industry were up 24 per cent y/y this August.

Across New Zealand, the highest advertised job titles on SEEK for this sector and their average advertised salaries this August were:

Warehousing, Storage & Distribution ($54,683)

Machine Operators ($48,197)

Management ($95,405)

Road Transport ($54,545)

The jobs with the highest average advertised salary on SEEK for Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics this August were:

Management ($95,405)

Purchasing, Procurement & Inventory ($82,002)

Aviation Services ($78,191)

“In our recent SEEK market research, labour based roles, like warehouse jobs, were also named by Kiwis as jobs they believe wouldn’t exist in 10 years’ time due to automation and outsourcing overseas, so it’s again interesting that these roles are still in demand for this sector,” said Faulding.

“Our country’s exporting culture is a likely driver of growth in this industry because NZ companies are now tapping into the overseas markets to grow their businesses, and are investing in new technology and logistics to distribute their products efficiently to be competitive,” Faulding added.

CANDIDATE AVAILABILITY

At a national level the data shows that there has been a slight year on year increase in the SEEK Employment Index this August, which points to favourable conditions for job seekers as there is slightly less applications and therefore competition, for each role. However, underneath this national figure there is a clear difference in candidate availability at a regional level.

For jobseekers in Auckland and Wellington, year on year there is a reasonable balance between jobs advertised and candidates applying.

While in Canterbury it remains a hirer’s market, for each job advertised there is 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.

“It’s important for job seekers in a hirer’s market, to have an up-to-date SEEK Profile to help them get noticed by prospective employers because they’re applying for jobs in a highly competitive market,” Faulding said.

[1] Source: Independent research conducted by Survey Sampling International (SSI) on behalf of SEEK (January 2016). Interviewing 4k Kiwi’s annually with data being weighted to be nationally representative of age, gender, location, employment status and income (based on NZ Stats).

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