Job Market continues to strengthen

Posted by Andrew on January 29, 2014

The New Zealand job market continues to go from strength to strength according to an analysis of over 50,000 roles listed on Trade Me Jobs last quarter. The number of job listings increased 17% over the same period last year, with many employers predicting a healthy job market for 2014.

What's happening around the country?

Several regions recorded year-on-year job ad growth in excess of 20% during the last quarter with Bay of Plenty (+28%), Waikato (+26%), Nelson/Tasman (+28%) and Canterbury (+23%) all notable standouts.

Together these regions account for one-third of all jobs on site, and their accelerated growth is a major contributor to the overall 17% increase in jobs advertised.

Auckland represents almost 40% of the national market and saw 17% growth year-on-year, a clear indication that our biggest employment market is showing no signs of losing speed.

Christchurch job listings are up 24% on the same period last year. Meanwhile, the Wellington job market has also shown a higher rate of growth in the December quarter with 7.4% growth, outstripping its 3.1% increase in September.

Not surprisingly, the number of roles in Hospitality & tourism rose significantly in the lead-up to the summer holidays with a 30% increase over and above the same period in 2012.

Agriculture, fishing & forestry, and Customer service roles typically enjoy a pre-Christmas spike and were up 32% and 35% year-on-year respectively.

The second-biggest employment sector, IT, experienced 9% year-on-year growth and continues to dominate the top end of the pay scale. Eight of the top ten highest-paying jobs are in the IT sector and paying at least $110,000 per year. These high salaries on offer are the result of a shortage of experienced IT professionals. Doctors ($146,000) and commercial property agents ($112,000) rounded out the top ten list.