Regional Labour Demand
Regional job vacancies dipped by 3.6 per cent to 79,000 in April 2024. This latest number of job ads is also 10.9 per cent less than a year earlier.
In comparison, metro areas experienced a lighter monthly drop but a greater annual drop, with decreases of 2.6 per cent and 15.1 per cent respectively.
Regional Australia job vacancies
Jobs and Skills Australia, monthly internet vacancies, RAI
All regions recorded reduced job ads in April 2024. The five regions with the smallest falls are scattered around New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory, South Australia, and the Northern Territory.
The five regions recording the smallest monthly dips in vacancies from March 2024 to April 2024 were:
- Tamworth and North West NSW dipping by 0.4% (1,209 compared to 1,214)
- Canberra & ACT dipping by 0.5% (6,938 compared to 6,972)
- Southern Highlands & Snowy dipping by 1.2% (1,213 compared to 1,228)
- Fleurieu Peninsula & Murray Mallee dipping by 1.4% (1,005 compared to 1,019)
- Regional Northern Territory dipping by 1.8% (1,079 compared to 1,099)
Different from the annual change pattern throughout the last two years, most regions experienced an annual decline in April, with only seven regions showing an increase.
The five regions with the biggest jumps in vacancies in April 2024 compared with April 2023 were:
- Regional Northern Territory up by 13.6%
- North West Tasmania up by 10.0%
- Launceston and Northeast Tasmania up by 7.5%
- Hobart & Southeast Tasmania up by 6.5%
- Fleurieu Peninsula & Murray Mallee up by 5.6%
In terms of the occupations being demanded, vacancies are largest for Professional roles (27%) of all vacancies in April, followed by Technicians and Trades roles (15%), Community and Personal Service roles (13%), and Clerical and Administrative roles (13%).
SOURCES The Internet Vacancy Index is updated monthly by Jobs and Skills Australia (https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/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).