Industry trends
Job ad growth on SEEK continued to be strong in March, recording a 16.2% increase from this time last year. The industries that experienced the largest growth are Mining, Resources & Energy (35%) and Science & Technology, which saw a 20% increase..jpg)
Despite strong levels of job ad growth nationally compared to this time last year, figures for March show more declining industries than seen in recent months. This could be an early warning sign of several industries cooling down.
The industry that saw the most significant decrease in job ads this month was Advertising, Arts & Media, with a drop of 20%. This industry has been struggling with a steady decline in recent months, perhaps as a result of the increasingly turbulent media landscape in Australia which has experienced significant cuts over the past year.
The Real Estate & Property industry also saw a decrease in job ads of 12% when compared with 12 months ago.
Trends across the country
Year-on-year growth was recorded in every state and territory in March. Tasmania led the way with 21.6% growth compared to the same time last year, led largely by growth in the Legal, Government & Defence and Human Resources & Recruitment industries.
The following map details the job ad growth experienced across the nation compared to 12 months ago.
Salary trends
The average annual salary came in at $84,971 in March, signalling 3.6% growth compared to the same time last year. There was also year-on-year monthly salary growth across all Australian states and territories.
The Northern Territory experienced the greatest growth, with average salaries increasing by 7.1% to $85,786 compared to 12 months ago. The average salary in Tasmania also experienced significant growth in March, rising 6.3% year-on-year.
The highest average annual salary was recorded in Western Australia in March, coming in at $87,432 (4.4% growth year-on-year).
Job ad volume: A two-horse state race
For the second month in a row, New South Wales was the number one contributor to national job ad growth, accounting for 34% of the national year-on-year growth for March, but Victoria came a close second with 28% in March.
Over the last year, the monthly ranking for which state contributes the most to national job ad growth has been hotly contested between the nation’s two largest labour markets.
NSW vs Victoria: Find out which state is the nation’s employment capital.
