Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey

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    Introduction

    Jobs and Skills Australia surveys at least 1000 employers each month to find out about their experience when recruiting staff as well as whether they are expecting to increase staffing levels. This feedback provides insights about labour market conditions and helps in developing resources designed to help job seekers understand what employers are looking for.

    Key indicators - October 2023

    Recruitment activity Recruitment difficulty rate Expect to increase staff

    49%

    56%

    20%

    Monthly change: 0% pts
    Yearly change: -9% pts
    Monthly change: -3% pts
    Yearly change: -14% pts
    Monthly change: -5% pts
    Yearly change: -11% pts

    October 2023 REOS results indicate that recruitment activity has eased significantly since peaking in mid-2022. The new REOS smoothed series (see charts overleaf) indicates the steep decline in the recruitment rate between mid-2022 and mid-2023 has now flattened with little change recorded during recent months. On the other hand, smoothed recruitment difficulty has continued to ease in recent months.

    In October 2023, 49% of employers recruited, the same proportion as last month, and 9 percentage points less than in October last year.

    • In Capital Cities, 47% of employers recruited in October 2023, 2 percentage points lower than last month and 11 percentage points lower than a year ago.
    • The recruitment rate was 54% in Rest of State areas, 5 percentage points higher than last month but 4 percentage points lower than this time last year.

    Proportion of employers who were currently recruiting or who had recruited in the past month

    Source: Recruitment Outlook and Experiences Survey, October 2023.

    Recruitment difficulty

    Recruitment difficulty eased by 3 percentage points in October 2023, with 56% per cent of recruiting employers having difficulty recruiting staff. The recruitment difficulty rate is currently 14 percentage points lower than October 2022.

    • In Capital Cities, 55% of recruiting employers had recruitment difficulty, 1 percentage point lower than last month and 12 percentage points lower than a year ago.
    • Recruitment difficulty in Rest of State areas eased by 7 percentage points from last month to 59% (16 percentage points lower than October last year).

    Proportion of recruiting employers who had recruitment difficulty

    Source: Recruitment Outlook and Experiences Survey, October 2023.

    Staffing outlook

    The proportion of employers expecting to increase their staff in the next three months eased by 5 percentage points to 20% in October 2023. Only 2% of employers were expecting their staffing levels to decrease.

    Proportion of employers expecting to increase staffing levels over the next 3 months

    Source: Recruitment Outlook and Experiences Survey, October 2023.

    Downloads

    Recruitment Insights Report - monthly

    Recruitment Insights Report - October 2023

    recruitment_insights_report_-_october_2023.pdf237703

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    Recruitment Insights Report - October 2023 data file

    recruitment_insights_report_-_october_2023_data_file.xlsx96678

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    Upcoming release:

    November 2023 REOS Recruitment Insights Report - 19 December 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - September 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - September 2023.pdf238082

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    Recruitment Insights Report - August 2023

    recruitment_insights_report_-_august_2023.pdf279164

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    Recruitment Insights Report - July 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - July 2023.pdf237305

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    Recruitment Insights Report - June 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - June 2023.pdf1780434

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    Recruitment Insights Report - May 2023

    recruitment_insights_report_-_may_2023.pdf601112

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    Recruitment Insights Report - April 2023

    recruitment_insights_report_-_april_2023.pdf342074

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    Recruitment Insights Report - March 2023

    recruitment_insights_report_-_march_2023.pdf321562

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    Recruitment Insights Report - February 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - February 2023.pdf455342

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    Recruitment Insights Report - January 2023

    Recruitment Insights Report - January 2023.pdf1052507

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    Recruitment Insights Report - December 2022

    recruitment_insights_report_-_december_2022.pdf355751

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    Recruitment Insights Report - November 2022

    Recruitment Insights Report - November 2022.pdf383271

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    Spotlight articles

    Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey: September quarter 2023 results

    The REOS September quarter 2023 report provides a detailed breakdown of REOS survey results across the states and territories, remoteness areas, industry and occupation.

    The report shows that recruitment activity has softened across all states and territories compared with a year ago, with widespread declines in the recruitment rate and recruitment difficulty rate over this period. The largest annual decline in the recruitment rate over the year was recorded in Victoria (down by 17 percentage points).

    REOS September quarter 2023 report

    reos_september_quarter_2023_report.pdf354390

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    REOS September quarter 2023 report

    reos_september_quarter_2023_report.docx303700

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    Upcoming release:

    Spotlight release - 4 December 2023

    Recruitment Spotlight - Employers greatest concerns for the future - October 2023

    reos_spotlight_-_employers_greatest_concerns_for_the_future_october_2023.pdf258223

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    Recruitment difficulty for Hospitality Workers - February 2023

    Recruitment difficulty for Hospitality Workers (February 2023).pdf244099

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    Recruitment Spotlight - Employers unrealised vacancies - September 2023

    recruitment_spotlight_-_employers_unrealised_vacancies_-_september_2023.pdf283511

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    Employers Who Hired a Jobless Applicant - November 2022

    employers-who-hired-a-jobless-applicant.pdf227799

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    Recruitment patterns for entry level vacancies - August 2023

    Recruitment patterns for entry level vacancies - August 2023.pdf359497

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    Recruitment Spotlight - Recent trends in recruitment difficulty - June 2023

    recruitment_spotlight_-_recent_trends_in_recruitment_difficulty.pdf807493

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    Recruitment Conditions in Capital Cities and Rest of State Areas - April 2023

    recruitment_conditions_in_capital_cities_and_rest_of_state_areas_-_april_2023.pdf283521

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    Spotlights prior to November 2022 are available at Recruitment insights | Labour Market Insights.