SEEK Employment Report - market continues to show signs of stabilising in May

Of the May data, Kendra Banks, Managing Director, SEEK ANZ, says:

“The market continues to show signs of stabilising after periods of rapid growth and decline shaped the labour market last year.

“Job ads dropped only marginally in May, with incremental decreases for most industries, and small increases in some others. Demand for Healthcare & Medical and Accounting and Construction workers rose against the trend.

“While job ad volumes have dropped since their peak last year, they remain higher than their pre-COVID levels, showing that hirers are still looking for workers, despite a reasonably tough economic outlook.

“Unemployment remains low, but candidate activity continues to rise, with applications per job ad increasing in ten of the past twelve months, indicating that Australians are open to change. Application levels are now almost at their pre-COVID levels, after nearly two-and-a-half years of talent shortages.”

NATIONAL INSIGHTS

Job ads fell for the fourth consecutive month in May - however, 0.6% is the lowest monthly drop in job ad numbers in the past year. Twelve months after job ads hit their peak, this may be indicating a slow down in the rate of decline. Job ad volumes are 22.0% lower than May 2022, and 21.7% higher than May 2019, demonstrating demand for workers remains  high, despite falling from the peaks recorded last year.

Applications per job ad rose 4.8% from March to April and are now only 1% lower than May 2019. This is the highest candidate activity levels have been at for over two years, with m/m rises ten out of the past 12 months.

Figure 1: National SEEK job ad percentage change m/m May 2022 to May 2023

Table 1: National, state and territory and metro/ regional job ad growth/decline comparing May 2023 to: i) April 2023 (m/m), and ii) May 2022 (y/y).

Figure 2: Major state job ad trends: May 2020 to May 2023

STATE & TERRITORY INSIGHTS

Job ads rose in the two territories: Northern Territory (4.8%) and the Australia Capital Territory (1.2%). Apart from Victoria, which recorded no change, every other state declined m/m, including  Tasmania (-2.2%) and South Australia (-1.9). Western Australia recorded its first decline this year, falling 0.7%.

The Public Sector was the only industry to grow in both regional and metro areas over the last quarter. Professional Services and Industrial have also grown in the regions whereas all other sectors delined in the metro.

Most states and territories recorded growth in applications per job ad from the month prior, notably in New South Wales (5%), Victoria (5%), and in Queensland (6%).

Figure 3:  Quarter-on-quarter job ad percentage change by sector, metro v. regional

Figure 4: National SEEK job ad percentage change by state: May 2023 vs April 2023

INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

Many of the larger industries recorded job ad decline in May, including Trades & Services (-1.7%), Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics (-2.3%) and Retail & Consumer Products (-3.1%).

The Healthcare & Medical industry was the largest to record an increase in job ads in May, rising 0.6%, due to increased demand for Physiotherapists, OTs and Rehabilitation workers (7%) and Psychologists, Counsellors and Social Workers (3%).

Job ads in Education & Training fell for the first time since December (-2.2%). Demand for Primary and Secondary Teachers continued to rise however, increasing 6% and 4% respectively m/m.

Applications per job ad have risen in most industries, led by applications for roles in Government & Defence (13%) and Call Centre & Customer Service (13%). Applications for Healthcare & Medical roles rose 6% and Manufacturing Transport & Logistics roles lifted 8%.

Figure 5: National SEEK Job Ad percentage change by industry (May 2023 vs April 2023) – Ordered by job ad volume

Click for the latest SEEK Employment Report data or for more employment insights or career advice please visit SEEK’s Hiring Advice or SEEK's Career Advice. 

MEDIA NOTE: When reporting SEEK data, we request that you attribute SEEK as the source and refer to SEEK as an employment marketplace.

About the SEEK Employment Report

The SEEK Employment Report is Australia’s leading employment index and provides a comprehensive overview of the Australian Employment Marketplace. The report includes the SEEK Employment Index (SEI) which measures only new job ads posted within the reported month to provide a clean measure of demand for labour across all classifications.

Note: the SEI may differ to the job ad count on SEEK’s website due to a number of factors including: 1) seasonal adjustments applied to the SEI; 2) the exclusion of duplicated job ads from the SEI; and 3) the exclusion of Company Listings (included under Company Profiles) from the SEI.

Disclaimer: The Data should be viewed and regarded as standalone information and should not be aggregated with any other information whether such information has been previously provided by SEEK Limited, ("SEEK"). The Data is given in summary form and whilst care has been taken in its preparation, SEEK makes no representations whatsoever about its completeness or accuracy. SEEK expressly bears no responsibility or liability for any reliance placed by you on the Data, or from the use of the Data by you. If you have received this message in error, please notify the sender immediately.

About SEEK

SEEK has been helping Australians live more fulfilling and productive working lives for 25 years.

SEEK is a diverse group of companies, comprised of a strong portfolio of online employment, educational, commercial and volunteer businesses. As a market leader in online employment marketplaces that span ten countries across Asia Pacific and Latin America, SEEK makes a positive contribution to people’s lives on a global scale.

In 2021, 2022 and 2023, SEEK was recognised as one of Australia’s Top Ten Places to Work in Tech in the AFR BOSS Best Places to Work awards.