In April 2021 there were over 67,500 job vacancies across regional Australia. This was a 2% increase on the previous high in March. Both March and April 2021 have now exceeded the previous high in late 2011 at the height of the mining boom. The big difference between 2021 and 2011 though is that a decade ago the jobs advertised were overwhelmingly in mining related industries (construction trades and professions) and in the resource states (Qld and WA). In 2021 there is a much greater diversity of jobs being sought, and the vacancy growth is spread right across regional Australia. It is possible that some of the growth in advertised vacancies is due to regional employers not finding workers through their usual channels and turning to the internet to advertise more widely. If this is true, it may well be that we are seeing the regional implications of closed international borders, as those local labour pools have all shrunk as a result of stopping the flow of workers into Australia.
The latest number of vacancies across regional Australia is just 2 per cent more than in the previous month and a very sizeable 100 per cent more than in April 2020, when much of Australia was in lockdown and hiring was at its low point for the year. Since that low point vacancy growth has been distributed across the country, with regional areas in all states showing growth. The largest increases over the year include some now familiar high growth regions: Dubbo and Western NSW, Riverina and Murray (NSW) and regional Tasmania, as well as the Sunshine Coast which has bounced back quickly from its COVID slump. Vacancies in these regions have almost tripled over the past 12 months.
Trends in job vacancies are highlighting some key economic dynamics occurring across the country. Victorian regions played catchup in monthly growth terms in late 2020 as they bounced back from the second round of COVID restrictions. They have now caught up, and their monthly growth rates are similar to regions in other states. Meanwhile Darwin and regional Northern Territory have continued to record high monthly increases (5% each) in job vacancies as the NT recovers from the post-Inpex economic malaise. The effects of that economic slump were clearly on display in the jobs market: vacancies in Darwin had been persistently trending down for almost a decade. It’s encouraging to see this turning around.
The top five regions with the biggest increases over the 12 months to April 2021 are:
- North West Tasmania with 176% more vacancies in April 2021 (182) than in April 2020 (502)
- Dubbo & Western NSW with 172% more (1,603 compared to 589)
- Sunshine Coast with 163%more (2,725 compared to 1,034)
- Launceston and Northeast Tasmania with 156% more (722 compared to 282)
- Riverina and Murray with 144% more (2,207 compared to 904)
NSW regions are again prominent in the list of regions with the biggest jumps from March to April 2021. The five regions with the biggest jumps from March to April 2021 were:
- Blue Mountains, Bathurst & Central West up by 7%
- Dubbo and Western NSW up by 6%
- Launceston and Northeast Tasmania up by 6%
- Tamworth and North West NSW up by 5%
- Regional Northern Territory up by 5%
Most vacancies in the regions are still for highly skilled trades and professionals including automotive, engineering and construction trades, medical practitioners and nurses, health diagnostic and therapy professionals, legal, social and welfare professionals as well as general-inquiry clerks, call centre workers, receptionists, carers and aides.
SOURCES The Internet Vacancy Index is updated monthly by the Department of Education Skills, Employment and Business (lmip.gov.au/default.aspx?LMIP/GainInsights/VacancyReport). The RAI has an interactive Regional Job Vacancy map of the data showing vacancies in 37 regions across Australia (Regional Jobs Vacancy Map).