Online job advertisements have plummeted on the back of the Queensland floods
By <a href="mailto:rzivkusic@acpmagazines.com.au“>Ruza Zivkusic| February 9, 2011
Online job advertisements have plummeted on the back of the Queensland floods, with a new survey showing transport was particularly affected.
The Advantage Job Index shows a 26 percent drop in advertisements in January.
The seasonally adjusted fall in the transport sector is most significant in Queensland, which recorded a 16.1 percent drop. Advertisements in Victoria fell 11.66 percent.
Queensland suffered its worst online job advertisements decline in two years, down by 5.78 percent from December.
However, the survey says flood recovery efforts will create demand for skilled workers, particularly in the building and construction and engineering sectors.
Declines in transport, building and construction and hospitality and tourism spearheaded Queensland’s downward spiral.
On a positive, Western Australia performed well in January. The mining state recorded a 5.8 percent rise driven by increased demand for skilled labour in the healthcare and engineering sectors.
It was the only state to record double digit growth in the retail sector by 12.14 percent. Job advertisements nationally have fallen by 0.36 percent.
The Director of Global Market Intelligence, Bob Olivier, says skilled migration policies might need to be reformed to address labour shortages.
“Booming Western Australia and disaster ravaged Queensland need skilled labour now, yet changes in 2007 to business migration practices have made it virtually impossible for most recruitment firms to place with their clients the overseas professionals these states desperately need,” he says.
“An urgent review of the current on hire arrangements would go a long way towards addressing the short-term skill shortages.”