Regional Labour Demand
Regional job vacancies remained steady at 91,000 in August 2023 with a 0.8 per cent increase from July. The latest level of vacancies reflects a slight 0.3 per cent decrease compared to the same period a year earlier. This job vacancy trend in regional Australia stands in stark contrast to metro Australia, where job ads have seen a dip of 0.1 per cent from the previous month, and a significant decline of 10.1 per cent year-over-year.
Regional Australia job vacancies
Source: Jobs and Skills Australia, monthly internet vacancies, RAI
The Northern Territory, Regional Queensland and Regional New South Wales had the highest rates of vacancy growth from July to August. The top growth regions were scattered around Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, and the Northern Territory.
The annual change in job vacancies across all regions varied significantly, ranging from a substantial increase of 22.5 per cent to a decrease of 11.7 per cent. In comparison, Sydney and Melbourne, the nation’s largest cities, observed the steepest annual declines at 15.9 per cent and 13.8 per cent respectively.
The five regions recording the biggest monthly increases in vacancies from July to August 2023 were:
- Sunshine Coast with 4.4% more vacancies in August 2023 (3,626) than in July 2023 (3,471)
- Southern Highlands & Snowy up by 3.7% (1,399 compared to 1,349)
- Wimmera & Western up by 3.3% (1,392 compared to 1,348)
- Regional Northern Territory up by 2.7% (1,077 compared to 1,049)
- Riverina & Murray up by 2.4% (2,742 compared to 2,679)
The five regions with the biggest jumps in vacancies in August 2023 compared with August 2022 were:
- Regional Northern Territory up by 22.5%
- Yorke Peninsula & Clare Valley up by 20.2%
- Central Queensland up by 19.4%
- Riverina & Murray up by 10.9%
- Wimmera & Western up by 10.6%
In terms of the occupations being demanded, vacancies are largest for Professional roles (29% of all vacancies in August), followed by Technicians and Trades roles (15%) and Community and Personal Service roles (13%).
SOURCES The Internet Vacancy Index is updated monthly by the Department of Education Skills, Employment and Business (https://labourmarketinsights.gov.au/our-research/internet-vacancy-index/). The RAI has an interactive Regional Job Vacancy map of the data showing vacancies in 37 regions across Australia (regionalaustralia.org.au/home/regional-jobs-vacancy-map).