SEEK NZ Employment Report - Auckland dragging job ad growth in September
OVERVIEW OF SEPTEMBER 2021:
STATE OF THE NATION:
- SEEK job ads were up 0.3% month-on-month (m/m).
- SEEK job ads were up by 44% in September 2021 year-on-year (y/y) and were up 12% when compared to September 2019.
- Applications per job ad increased 11% m/m.
- The top three industries showing the biggest volume growth m/m are Healthcare & Medical (10%), Trades and Services (6%) and Construction (9%).
STATE OF THE REGIONS:
- All regions saw a m/m increase in job ad numbers except Auckland (-8%) and West Coast (-2%).
- Job ad volume increased the most in Wellington (4%) and Canterbury (9%) regaining the ground lost in August.
STATE OF THE NATION: NZ BOUNCES BACK AS AUCKLAND JOB AD NUMBERS CONTINUE TO FALL
The latest SEEK Employment Report sees job ad numbers return to positive growth as restrictions ease across the country.
Rob Clark, Country Manager, SEEK NZ, comments: “September’s Employment data is a tale of two parts. Auckland continues to be impacted by restrictions and has seen a second month of job ad decline, whereas the rest of the country has bounced back after the lockdowns in August.
“The latest SEEK NZ data shows that national job ad volumes have remained flat, rising only 0.3% month-on-month in September, however when we look back to the same month in 2019, job ad numbers are 12% higher nationally.
“When comparing Auckland to the rest of NZ, we see quite a different picture due to the varying levels of lockdown restrictions. Job ad volume numbers in Auckland saw a drop of 8% versus the previous month, whereas the rest of New Zealand, excluding Auckland, had a job ad volume increase of 7%.”
Applications per ad levels remain low despite traffic to SEEK.co.nz being stable at over 5 million visits in September.
Rob Clark continues: “Applications per job ad rose in September, with an increase of 11%. However, if we compare this number to September 2019, there were 26% fewer applications per job ad. Visits to site are strong, showing that people are monitoring job activity but being hesitant to move roles just yet.”
Figure 1: Auckland, Canterbury, Wellington, and NZ job ad growth and decline since September 2019.
Table 1: National and major regions job ad growth/decline comparing September 2021 to: i) August 2021 (m/m) ii) September 2020 (y/y) and iii) September 2019 – all regions listed in table at the end of this release.
STATE OF THE REGIONS: AS RESTRICTIONS LIFT SO DO JOB AD NUMBERS ACROSS NZ
As restrictions eased around the country throughout September, job ad growth followed.
Rob Clark continues: “In contrast to August when every region experienced a month-on-month decline, job ad volumes increased in September across all of our regions except Auckland and West Coast which saw a decrease of 8% and 2% respectively.
“Throughout the pandemic, job ads have bounced back shortly after restrictions eased. This has been the case for the majority of the country outside of Auckland. The most significant growth comes from Wellington and Canterbury, which has seen an increase of 4% and 9% respectively.”
Figure 2: National SEEK NZ Job Ad percentage change by region (September 2021 vs August 2021)
STATE OF THE INDUSTRIES: AUCKLAND IMPACTING INDUSTRY DATA
Auckland’s decline in job ad numbers impacting the industries job ad growth across the nation. This is the case across multiple industries.
Rob Clark explains: “Of the 28 industries that we categorise, 20 saw a decline in Auckland from August to September. If we look nationally and exclude Auckland, then only eight industries experienced a drop.
“Trades & Services is an excellent example of the positive changes around the country. In Auckland, the industry is down 17%, nationally up by 6%; however, there has been a 20% increase month-on-month across NZ if we exclude Auckland.
“Hospitality & Tourism is an industry that reacts to changing conditions quickly. The industry has dropped 35% in Auckland month-on-month, which contributes to a national drop of 22%. Excluding Auckland, there has been a 6% increase nationally. I am confident that as soon as restrictions ease, roles in Auckland will bounce-back too, as we have seen after previous lockdowns.”
Table 2: Top 10 industries m/m growth / decline for Auckland and New Zealand excluding Auckland (September 2021 vs August 2021)
Figure 3: National SEEK NZ Job Ad percentage change by industry (September 2021 vs August 2021)
Table 3: National and regional job ad growth/decline comparing September 2021 to: i) August 2021 (y/y); ii) September 2020 (m/m) and; iii) September 2019
MEDIA NOTE: When reporting SEEK NZ data, we request that you attribute SEEK NZ as the source and refer to SEEK NZ as an employment marketplace.
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