Industry trends
The Mining, Resources & Energy industry continues to lead the way, with the sector posting a 21.7% increase in job ads compared to the same time last year as well as strong monthly growth of 12.3%. In addition, salaries for the mining sector have been steadily increasing year on year, with a 4.5% increase already in 2019.
Public sector roles in Government & Defence (19.2%) and Healthcare & Medical (14.4%) were the second and third strongest contributors to the employment market, demonstrating a rising trends for jobs ads in these sectors.
The states and territories that showed strong growth in Government & Defence job ads were the Northern Territory (67.9%), Tasmania (64.1%) and the ACT (61.8%). In Healthcare & Medical, the top states for job ad growth were New South Wales (29.2%), Tasmania (24.1%) and the ACT (22.4%).
Kendra Banks, Managing Director, SEEK ANZ says that the first month of the New Year recorded stable results across the national job ad market. “2019 is off to a steady start showing growth in job ads compared to this time last year. We continue to maintain steady and consistent growth for new job ads and advertised salaries,” she says.
“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 & Defence candidates”.
The table below represents the top five industries that experienced year-on-year job ad growth in January:
While several industries experienced steady growth in January, year-on-year decline was experienced across 14 industries this month, with Real Estate & Property recording the greatest decline of 15.6%. The Construction industry was close behind with a 14.1% decline, however the industry did see a 3.5% rebound in monthly job ad growth.
The industries that experienced the greatest year-on-year decline in January are shown below:
Trends across the country
There was monthly job ad growth in all states and territories but one in January, with Australia nationally recording 1.7% growth in job ads this month.
Once again, Tasmania led the way in year-on-year job ad growth, with the state recording 18.9% growth in January. The Apple Isle also posted strong monthly figures, recording a 7.4% monthly increase in job ads. Western Australia recorded another positive result with 5.3% yearly job ad growth.
The Northern Territory experienced both a year-on-year (9.5%) and month-on-month (2.1%) decline in January, and was the only state or territory to record a monthly decline.
The following map outlines the job ad growth experienced across every region compared to 12 months ago:
Salary trends
Advertised salaries in Australia grew by 2.5% year-on-year in January, with Western Australia recording the biggest pay packet increase of 4.9%. The Northern Territory was close behind, with the Top End recording 4.7% yearly salary growth, while Tasmania was the only state or territory to record year-on-year decline (-0.5%).
The top average advertised salary was recorded in Western Australia ($90,361), while Science & Technology recorded the greatest year-on-year salary growth (9.7%). Again, the top average advertised salary was recorded in the Mining, Resources & Energy industry ($123,844).
