Aussie job market makes a comeback

The national unemployment rate has dropped to 4.3 per cent, and the job market is up 6.4 per cent year-on-year and 1.6 per cent month-on-month, recent research found.

For its report, Jobs Report: Real-Time Edition, Employment Hero collected employment data from over 300,000 businesses and 1.5 million employees on its platform to explore current employment trends.

Rise in employment

Its report revealed that engineering was up 20.4 per cent year-on-year; however, science and tech roles fell in major cities – down 6 per cent in Brisbane, 3.6 per cent in Adelaide, and 0.4 per cent in Perth. Despite these drops, the highest state hiring growth occurred in Western Australia (+7.1 per cent) and Queensland (+5.8 per cent). Its results also revealed a 6.4 per cent rise in employment year-on-year and 1.6 per cent month-on-month, which was led by young casuals and engineers.

Co-founder and chief executive of Employment Hero, Ben Thompson (pictured), noted that this demand for engineers has risen due to “ramped up” infrastructure, construction, and renewable projects. Additionally, he noted that the plummet in tech roles in major cities will not last due to businesses “still bullish on AI, so those jobs will come back in stride." In addition to this increase in job growth for October, the ABS found that the unemployment rate has dropped to 4.3 per cent in October, down from 4.5 per cent in September.

Taking on multiple jobs

Further, average hours worked fell another 1 per cent month-on-month, a reduction that has been happening throughout most of the year, Employment Hero’s research found. The data also found that casual employment rose by 9.5 per cent year-on-year, and full-time employment rose by 3.7 per cent year-on-year. For October, the ABS also found that 55,000 full-time jobs were added.

Thompson noted that although businesses have been hiring again, they were cautious about how much work they were giving people. From these findings, he suggested that the rise in hires and a reduction in hours show that many Aussies are taking on multiple jobs; however, he noted: “More people are working, but we’re not necessarily getting more done”.

“Retail and hospo roles are also in high demand as shops gear up for peak season, leaning on casual and part-time workers to fill the rosters,” he said.

Wages growth

Wages have continued to rise steadily, up 4.8 per cent year-on-year, currently at a median of $45.20 an hour. Consulting & Strategy (+9.2 per cent) and Engineering (+7.5 per cent) led the pack, and mid-level workers between 25 and 34 made the biggest gains among all age groups (+6.7 per cent year-on-year).

“It’s no surprise wages are still climbing… everything else is too. With inflation sitting at 3.2 per cent, employers are struggling to keep up. Most are trying to do right by their people, but it’s getting harder to match the rising cost of living,” Thompson said.

“Today’s figures show the labour market continues to generate secure, full-time work. Thousands of workers are finding secure jobs, and casual employment is declining as a share of the workforce,” president at ACTU, Michele O’Neil, concluded.