Not All Months Are Created Equal

This insight uses SEEK data to highlight times throughout the year when hirers across different industries are more likely to be looking for workers and when candidates are likely to face the most or least competition for roles.

Hirers are generally going to face the most competition for workers in March and May, with more ads on SEEK on average in these months than any other throughout the year. Although applications also typically increase in March and May, they don’t increase as much as job ads, so job seekers looking during these months are going to face less competition with fewer other applicants and more roles available, resulting in applications per ad being generally lower.

However, the peak month for ads on SEEK and the best time for job seekers to search isn’t the same across all industries, as is discussed further below.

When do hirers advertise the most jobs?

The total number of job ads on SEEK has peaked in May each year on average since 2016, ignoring the COVID affected years 2020 to 2022. Job ads are also typically well above average in March. The May peak may reflect the timing of the financial year in New Zealand, with businesses reassessing their staffing needs in the new financial year and staff leaving following annual performance reviews and bonus payouts, creating vacant positions.

Ads are generally at their lowest level for the year in December. The public and school holidays in December and early January likely make it a more difficult time to recruit and onboard new employees than other times of the year.

January typically sees a large rebound in ads before another lift in the number of job ads in March and a notable decline in April. Easter often occurs in April accompanied by school holidays, so, as in December, it can be a more difficult time to recruit and onboard new employees. Ads generally rebound again in May.

Broadly speaking the seasonal pattern in job ads means there are going to be more potential positions for job seekers in March and May than at other times of the year, although the position may not necessarily be in the job seeker’s area of interest, with some industries posting more job ads at other times of the year.

When are the peak hiring months for each industry?

Some industry classifications have notably different job ad posting patterns from the aggregate. For example, Sports & Recreation job ads generally peak in January. For industries with more consistent demand, like Construction, the difference between peak ad months and the average is not as large as it is for more seasonal industries.

Table: Peak month for ads by SEEK Classification

Hospitality & Tourism is a classification with a slightly more unique seasonal pattern. Its job ads typically jump in January and stay elevated until April when they drop notably, they then jump again in August ahead of the summer tourist season. Job ads in Hospitality & Tourism have peaked in October in some years.

Job ad volumes in the closely related Retail & Consumer Product classification follow a similar seasonal pattern but with less volatility across the year and ads also tending to be above average in May. These patterns mean that there are more opportunities for job seekers in these industries in January through to March and then again in August through to October than at other times of the year.

There is some variation in the kind of organisations posting job ads across the year, with SEEK’s Small to Medium Enterprise (SME) customers posting above-average ad volumes in January through to March, while Recruiter volumes tend to be muted in January. SEEK’s Government customer ads peak in May and August rather than March and May, perhaps reflecting the government financial year ending on 30 June each year.

When do we see the most applications?

Usually, the number of applications for roles on SEEK tends to peak each May but are only a little above application levels seen in January, July and August.

Month-to-month fluctuations in the total number of applications broadly follows the number of ads on site, so that there are less applications than average in April and far less in December than at other times of the year.

Although total applications fluctuate at similar times to job ads, they don’t increase and decrease to the same degree, so the average number of applications per ad are below average between February and May. November and December have the most applications per ad on average when job ads decline more than applications.

So, those applying for jobs in November and December are likely to face much more competition than those who apply for jobs earlier in the year. Finding a job in February to May is likely to be slightly easier with applicants competing with fewer other applicants for each job. Historically there have been around 3% less applications per ad between February and May than on average across the year.

Applications per ad typically peak in December for a lot of SEEK’s different industry classifications. Hospitality & Tourism is a notable exception, with applications per ad peaking in June, when ads are well below average in the classification.

Table: Peak and trough months for applications per ad by SEEK Classification

There will be less competition for roles when applications per ad are below average. For most industries this is between March and August. Again, Hospitality & Tourism stands out from other classifications, with applications per ad generally at their lowest in October.

Notes:

About Blair Chapman, PhD

Dr Blair Chapman is SEEK’s Senior Economist. Blair undertakes economic analysis and forecasting of the Australian and New Zealand economies and labour markets. He leverages SEEK’s data to develop unique insights about the economy.

Blair’s economic analysis and forecasting skills have been honed across both private and public organisations including ANZ, Deloitte Access Economics, the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) and the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).

While at the RBA, Blair was their representative on the ABS’s Labour Statistics Advisory Group for several years. Blair holds a PhD in Economics from Johns Hopkins University where his studies concentrated on macroeconomics and labour. He completed his undergraduate studies at Monash University, where he majored in Economics, Econometrics and Accounting.

About SEEK

SEEK is a market leader in online employment marketplaces in Australia, New Zealand and across South-East Asia, with minority investments in China, South Korea and a number of other countries.

SEEK leverages its unique data and technology to create innovative solutions and insights into the future of work, while protecting its customers’ privacy and using data ethically.

© Scoop Media