SEEK NZ Employment Report - quarterly update shows strong recovery

QUARTER THREE SHOWS GOOD RECOVERY AFTER INITIAL IMPACTS OF COVID IN QUARTER TWO

The latest SEEK NZ Quarterly Employment Report data shows a strong return to positive q/q performance with a 66% national growth in jobs advertised during Q3 which includes July, August and September.

Comparing the third quarter of 2020 with the same quarter last year job ads are 28% lower. Since the low point of April, we have seen month-on-month growth except for August.

Janet Faulding, General Manager, SEEK NZ comments: “This quarter has seen month-on-month positive growth with the exception of August which coincided with the introduction of a second lockdown in Auckland. Spending close to three weeks in alert level three took its toll on our biggest city and is reflected in the nationwide figures too. However, the recent return to alert level one nationally should bring hope to job seekers across the board. This demonstrates the close correlation between restrictions and the impact on jobs. We are currently sitting at the highest job ad level since the pandemic began.

“Looking at the major regions, they are showing the biggest variances in job ads when compared to the same quarter last year. Auckland is 43% lower y/y, Wellington is 32% down, and Canterbury is 38% down. However, there are positive signs as when we look at September alone we can see the gap between last year and this year is narrowing. And, all regions have significantly improved from Q2 to Q3 in 2020.

“Now that we have the results of the election, we often see an increase in job advertising and recruitment. Many businesses wait to see the results of an election before making big financial decisions, including onboarding new staff.”

Figure 2: National SEEK NZ Job Ad percentage change by region (Q3 vs Q2 2020)

STATE OF THE INDUSTRY SECTORS

Topping the list of industries contributing the most to growth in terms of job ad numbers from Q2 2020 to Q3 2020 are Trades & Services (56%), Information & Communication Technology (53%) and Manufacturing and Transport & Logistics (65%).

The five sectors that have the highest number of roles right now on seek.co.nz are:

● Information & Communication Technology with roles for developers / programmers, business / systems analysts, programme & project management, software engineering and help desk & IT support being in demand.

● Trades & Services with roles for labourers, automotive trades, building trades, technicians, carpentry & cabinet making, electricians and hair & beauty services 

● Manufacturing, Transport & Logistics including roles in warehousing, storage & distribution, machine operations, assembly & process work, road transport and couriers, drivers & postal services

● Healthcare & Medical with roles in psychology, counselling & social work, aged-care nursing and physiotherapy, occupational therapy & rehabilitation.

● Administration & Office Support including roles for administration assistants, personal & executive assistants & secretarial, receptionists and office management.  

Figure 3: National SEEK NZ Job Ad percentage change by industry (Q3 vs Q2 2020)

Source: SEEK Employment Index, July – September 2020 vs April – June 2020

Download the latest SEEK NZ Employment data here

For more employment insights or career advice please visit SEEK’s Hiring Advice or SEEK's Career Advice

MEDIA NOTE: When reporting SEEK data, we request that you attribute SEEK as the source and refer to SEEK as an employment marketplace.