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Introduction
Jobs and Skills Australia surveys at least 1,000 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 - August 2024
| Recruitment activity | Recruitment difficulty rate | Expect to increase staff |
|---|---|---|
|
43% |
50% |
22% |
| Monthly change: -1% pt Yearly change: -3% pts |
Monthly change: 3% pts Yearly change: -11% pts |
Monthly change: 4% pts Yearly change: -2% pts |
Recruitment activity decreased slightly in August 2024 with a slight rise in recruitment activity in the Capital Cities coinciding with a decrease in activity in regional areas. In contrast, the recruitment difficulty rate rose over the month.
In smoothed terms, the recruitment rate has continued its marked decline since the start of the year and is well below peak levels recorded in mid-2022. The smoothed recruitment difficulty rate eased generally over the last year, despite the rise over the month. The smoothed future expectations to increase staff has continued to decline and is around levels reported in mid-2021. These results, together with data from Jobs and Skills Australia’s Internet Vacancy Index, which shows a gradual decline in the number of job advertisements, below its mid-2022 peak, seem to point to an easing in labour market activity in the period ahead.
The recruitment difficulty rate rose over the month. Over the last year, there has been a more marked decrease in difficulty recruiting for casual jobs compared with permanent positions.
Recruitment activity
Recruitment activity decreased by 1 percentage point over the month to 43% of employers in August 2024. This is 3 percentage points less than in August 2023, and 16 percentage points lower than the record high of 59% in mid-2022.
- In Capital Cities, 42% of employers recruited over the month, 1 percentage point higher than a month ago but still down by 2 percentage points from August 2023.
- The recruitment rate in Rest of State areas (which typically covers regional Australia) moved in the opposite direction, decreasing by 5 percentage points over the month to 45% of employers. This is now 3 percentage points lower than a year ago.
Proportion of employers who were currently recruiting or who had recruited in the past month
Source: Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey, August 2024.
Recruitment difficulty
Recruitment difficulty rose by 3 percentage points to 50% of recruiting employers in August 2024. This is 11 percentage points lower than last year and 25 percentage points lower than the peak of 75% recorded in July 2022.
- Just over a third (35%) of employers recruiting for casual positions had recruitment difficulty in August 2024, down by 2 percentage points from July 2024 and 15 percentage points lower than a year ago. Casual positions are more likely to be roles that do not require significant formal training requirements and are generally easier to fill.
- The recruitment difficulty rate for employers recruiting for permanent positions (60% in August 2024) rose over the month (up by 7 percentage points) to be 6 percentage points lower than a year ago.
The rate of recruitment difficulty in Capital Cities increased by 2 percentage points over the month to 50%, while it increased by 5 percentage points in Rest of State areas to 51%. The long-term trend of the recruitment difficulty rate for both regions has been generally declining since the peak in mid-2022.
Proportion of recruiting employers who had recruitment difficulty
Source: Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey, August 2024.
Staffing outlook: employers expecting to increase staff
The proportion of employers expecting to increase staff numbers in the next three months rose by 4 percentage points to 22% in August 2024. This is 2 percentage points lower than August last year.
Expectations to increase staffing levels have been variable across metropolitan and regional areas in recent months. Both regions recorded an increase in future staffing expectations (Capital Cities: +5 percentage points, Rest of State areas: +4 percentage points) to both stand at 22% of employers. Looking through the month-to-month variability, the smoothed series has been trending downward over the last six months in both metropolitan and regional areas.
Only 4% of employers expected to decrease their staffing levels in the next 3 months, up by 1 percentage point over the year.
Proportion of employers expecting to increase staffing levels over the next 3 months
Source: Recruitment Experiences and Outlook Survey, August 2024.
Downloads
Recruitment Insights Report - monthly
REOS Recruitment Insights Report - August 2024
reos_recruitment_insights_report_august_2024.pdf243533
DownloadREOS Recruitment Insights Report - August 2024
reos_recruitment_insights_report_august_2024.docx328300
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - August 2024 data file
recruitment_insights_report_-_august_2024_data_file.xlsx102129
DownloadUpcoming release:
September 2024 REOS Recruitment Insights Report - 22 October 2024
Recruitment Insights Report - July 2024
reos_recruitment_insights_report_-_july_2024.pdf301757
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - June 2024
REOS Recruitment Insights Report - June 2024.pdf253393
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - May 2024
reos_recruitment_insights_report_-_may_2024.pdf254316
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - April 2024
REOS Recruitment Insights Report April 2024.pdf253445
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - March 2024
reos_recruitment_insights_report_-_march_2024.pdf246042
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - February 2024
recruitment_insights_report_-_february_2024.pdf244176
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - January 2024
Recruitment Insights Report - January 2024_0.pdf245383
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - December 2023
recruitment_insights_report_-_december_2023.pdf243858
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - November 2023
Recruitment Insights Report - November 2023.pdf241703
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - October 2023
recruitment_insights_report_-_october_2023.pdf237703
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - September 2023
Recruitment Insights Report - September 2023.pdf238082
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - August 2023
recruitment_insights_report_-_august_2023.pdf279164
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - April 2023
recruitment_insights_report_-_april_2023.pdf342074
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - March 2023
recruitment_insights_report_-_march_2023.pdf321562
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - February 2023
Recruitment Insights Report - February 2023.pdf455342
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - January 2023
Recruitment Insights Report - January 2023.pdf1052507
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - December 2022
recruitment_insights_report_-_december_2022.pdf355751
DownloadRecruitment Insights Report - November 2022
recruitment_insights_report_-_november_2022.pdf383271
DownloadSpotlight articles
Recruitment experiences across Australia’s regions – October 2024
This spotlight looks at recruitment experiences across Major Cities, Inner Regional Australia, Outer Regional Australia, and Remote and Very Remote Australia.
It includes annual trends in recruitment activity and recruitment difficulty across these regions, as well as the differences in the ways that employers recruit across the different regions, alongside the recruitment difficulties employers face.
Remote and Very Remote Australia was the only remoteness region to record an increase in recruitment activity in the first half of 2024. Recruitment activity surged in Remote and Very Remote Australia in the first half of 2024 to 70%, up from 62% in 2023.
While recruitment is usually much more difficult for employers in the remoter areas of Australia, fewer employers stated that they had difficulty recruiting in the first half of 2024 and the recruitment difficulty rate dropped to a record low of 53% in the first half of this year.
The Northern Territory had the highest recruitment rate among all States and Territories, which was around 70% in the first half of 2024. The data also indicated that the recruitment rate was even higher in Remote and Very Remote Northern Territory.
REOS Spotlight - Recruitment experiences across Australia's regions - October 2024
recruitment_experiences_across_australias_regions_-_october_2024.pdf501896
DownloadREOS Spotlight - Recruitment experiences across Australia's regions - October 2024
recruitment_experiences_across_australias_regions_-_october_2024.docx469035
DownloadUpcoming release:
October 2024 REOS Spotlight – 15 October 2024
REOS Spotlight - June quarter 2024 results.pdf
REOS Spotlight - June quarter 2024 results.pdf367767
DownloadREOS Spotlight - June quarter 2024 results.docx
REOS Spotlight - June quarter 2024 results.docx347438
DownloadREOS Spotlight - Recruitment Difficulty Update to May 2024.pdf
reos_spotlight_-_recruitment_difficulty_update_to_may_2024.pdf239410
DownloadREOS Spotlight - March quarter 2024 results
reos_spotlight_-_march_quarter_2024_results.pdf368838
DownloadREOS spotlight - Employers' experiences recruiting for apprentices - April 2024
reos_spotlight_-_employers_experiences_recruiting_for_apprentices.pdf315142
DownloadRecruitment difficulty for Hospitality Workers - February 2023
Recruitment difficulty for Hospitality Workers (February 2023).pdf244099
DownloadREOS Spotlight - Employers' retention issues
reos_spotlight_-_employers_retention_issues.pdf315085
DownloadREOS Spotlight - Jobless applicants December 2023
REOS Spotlight - Jobless applicants December 2023 .pdf226661
DownloadREOS Spotlight - December quarter 2023 results
reos_spotlight_-_december_quarter_2023_results.pdf397571
DownloadRecruitment Spotlight - Employers greatest concerns for the future - October 2023
reos_spotlight_-_employers_greatest_concerns_for_the_future_october_2023.pdf258223
DownloadSpotlight - September quarter 2023 results - November 2023
spotlight_-_sept_qtr_2023_results_-_november_2023_.pdf354390
DownloadRecruitment Spotlight - Employers unrealised vacancies - September 2023
recruitment_spotlight_-_employers_unrealised_vacancies_-_september_2023.pdf283511
DownloadRecruitment patterns for entry level vacancies - August 2023
Recruitment patterns for entry level vacancies - August 2023.pdf359497
DownloadRecruitment Spotlight - Recent trends in recruitment difficulty - June 2023
recruitment_spotlight_-_recent_trends_in_recruitment_difficulty.pdf807493
DownloadRecruitment Conditions in Capital Cities and Rest of State Areas - April 2023
recruitment_conditions_in_capital_cities_and_rest_of_state_areas_-_april_2023.pdf283521
DownloadEmployers Who Hired a Jobless Applicant - November 2022
employers-who-hired-a-jobless-applicant.pdf227799
DownloadSpotlights prior to November 2022 are available at Recruitment insights | Labour Market Insights.
Research articles
Contact Details
For information on the REOS survey or the Recruitment Insights Reports email REOS@jobsandskills.gov.au or telephone 1800 059 439 (REOS survey enquiries only).