Industry trends
Public sector jobs continued to rise this month, with the Government & Defence industry leading the way with a 17.3% increase in job ads compared to the same time last year. In addition, salaries within the Government & Defence sector also recorded year-on-year growth of 2.7%, with the average annual salary coming in at $95,276.
Roles in Healthcare & Medical (11%) and Community Services & Development (10.9%) also recorded year-on-year growth and were among the top five growth industries for the month.
Kendra Banks, Managing Director, SEEK ANZ says growth in the public sector continues to create job opportunities across the country, particularly in the ‘care’ industries.
“A trend continuing into 2019 is the labour force demand in the public sector, particularly for Community Services and Healthcare & Medical candidates. Both have been driven by an increasing ageing population with job opportunities rising across Nursing Aged Care and Age Support workers. Positions within these industries are ever-evolving and are diverse in the skills and experience hires require from candidates,” she says.
Related content: Aged Care recruitment in the spotlight
The table below represents the top five industries that experienced year-on-year job ad growth in February:
While several industries experienced growth this month, a decline was recorded in job ads for Design & Architecture (-20.4%), Real Estate & Property (-15.8%) and Construction (-14.2%).
“We have seen a slowdown in job advertising, which has been driven by a number of factors including a decline in demand for workers in Real Estate and Construction, business and consumer confidence, and the upcoming election. We will be interested to see if the growth in the other major employing industries along with the commencement of large infrastructure projects creates enough employment opportunities to offset this decline,” says Banks.
The industries that experienced the greatest year-on-year decline in February are shown below:
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Trends across the country
Tasmania and Western Australia continued to lead the way in year-on-year job ad growth this month, as the only states to register positive results.
The Apple Isle recorded 4.7% job ad growth in February compared to the same time last year, while Western Australia posted 3.7% year-on-year growth. Western Australia was the only state to record monthly job ad growth, posting a modest 0.2% result.
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 3.2% year-on-year in February. Interestingly, SEEK data suggests that the rise in average advertised salary at a national level is driven by a change in the mix of job ads, where lower-paying jobs are declining at a faster rate than higher-paying jobs.
The Northern Territory recorded the biggest increase of 4.7%. The Top End was closely followed by South Australia, which posted 4.6% growth compared to the same time last year, as well as strong monthly growth (3.1%).
Once again, the top average advertised salary was posted in Western Australia ($90,118), while Mining, Resources & Energy recorded the top pay packet ($122,502).
