Eastern states drive fall in job postings
As job ads fall, every industry is experiencing more applications compared to last year, SEEK data shows.
Job advertisements declined for a second month in a row last month, driven by falls in the east coast, while job applications recorded the smallest monthly rise since July 2022, latest SEEK data shows.
Applications per job ad, which have been on the rise for almost two years, only edged up by 0.3 per cent in May.
Meanwhile, job ads fell 0.6. per cent last month, driven by declines in ad volumes in NSW, Queensland, Victoria and the Northern Territory.
Seek said ad volumes in NSW and Victoria were both 24.1 per cent lower compared to last year, with almost all industries recording a decline in postings.
“Job ads have fallen further in Melbourne and Sydney compared to the rest of those states,” it said.
Job ads in regional areas also decreased more than in metro areas, down 1.4 per cent from last month compared to -0.3 per cent in the cities.
SEEK said 16 of its 28 industry classifications recorded increases in job ads last month, including real estate & property (4.8 per cent), legal (4.2 per cent) and healthcare & medical (0.8 per cent).
“Over the past seven months, hiring activity within real estate & property has increased, with ad volumes rising 13 per cent since November,” it said.
“Job ads have risen across all roles within this industry, including commercial sales, leasing & property management (20 per cent) to residential leasing & property management (14 per cent) and residential sales (11 per cent).”
However, ads for accounting roles were down by 1.3 per cent. Science & technology roles recorded the greatest monthly decline of 13.4 per cent.
Legal and insurance & superannuation were the only two industries where job ads rose year-on-year, up 4.3 per cent and 1.1 per cent respectively.
In line with job ad volumes slowing, every industry recorded an increase in applications per job ad compared to last year.
“Levels have doubled for information & communication technology and consulting & strategy roles in the past twelve months,” SEEK said.
“Applications per job ad in mining, resources & energy are near to peak levels, demonstrating significant competition for roles within this industry.”
Applications rose in most states and territories except Victoria and Western Australia, both down by 2.9 per cent, and 2.4 per cent in Tasmania.
“For Victoria, this is the first time in over two years applications per job ad have declined,” Seek said.
“With housing affordability and accessibility an ongoing issue for most of the country, demand for real estate & property workers has been increasing steadily for the past half-year, and in may rose in all but one state,” managing director Kendra Banks said.
“Competition for roles within the information & communication technology and consultancy & strategy industries continues to rise, with applications per job ad now double what they were in April 2023.”
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