The latest SEEK Employment Report data shows that new job ads picked up in January with a modest growth rate of 0.6 per cent (y/y). Advertised salaries also experienced a growth rate of 2.5 per cent respectively.
Mining, resources and energy continue to outperform a number of industries in Australia with new job ads up by 21.7 per cent (compared to January 2018). In addition, salaries for the mining sector have been steadily increasing year on year, with a 4.5 per cent increase already in 2019. Public sector job roles in government and defence (+19.2 per cent) and healthcare and medical (+14.4 per cent) were the second and third strongest contributors to the employment market, demonstrating a rising trend for job ads in these sectors.
The states and territories with the highest job ad growth for government and defence were the Northern Territory (67.9 per cent), Tasmania (64.1 per cent) and the ACT (61.8 per cent). For healthcare and medical, the top states and territories for job ad growth were NSW (29.2 per cent), Tasmania (24.1 per cent) and the ACT (22.4 per cent).
Science and technology also continues to be a strong contributor to job ad growth across the nation with a 12.8 per cent increase when compared to last year.
While several industries experienced steady growth in January, the month also saw a decline in job ads for construction (-14.1 per cent), design and architecture (-13.7 per cent) and advertising, arts and media (-12.6 per cent).
The majority of the states and territories (four out of seven) experienced growth for job ads, however, NSW (the state with the largest labour force), was one of the states with a small decline (-1.1 per cent).
“2019 is off to a steady start showing growth in job ads compared to this time last year,” said Kendra Banks, managing director, SEEK ANZ. “We continue to maintain steady and consistent growth for new job ads and advertised salaries.
“When we look at the diverse range of industries, it comes as no surprise that the mining sector still continues to dominate the employment market. However, it is interesting to see the increased demand in job roles for the public sector, particularly for government and defence candidates.
“This month also saw International Day of Women and Girls in Science (11th February) something we at SEEK are an advocate for. Our data shows that women make up nearly half (49 per cent) of those who express interest in Science and Technology related roles, with job ads for these roles increasing year on year.
Banks adds: “An additional insight we’ve seen, is that overall, 27 per cent of women have expressed an interest in STEM job roles, which is an increase of three per cent since 2015.”