Recruiter’s logistics-specific jobs index shows a more confident industry in Australia.
Australia’s transport, logistics and supply chain industry is among the fastest growing sectors of the national economy, according to the latest jobs research by recruitment specialist Labourforce.
Its monthly Transport, Logistics and Supply Chain Jobs Index shows employment in the sector rose by 4.6 per cent during September, contributing to the 14.7 per cent rise in jobs over the 12 months to October 1.
That rise is almost double the growth in jobs across the border Australian economy, Labourforce spokesman Paul McLeay says.
“Last month saw healthy growth in job opportunities for road transport workers and particularly store persons and freight handlers,” he says.
There has also been a shift in the geographic make-up of the industry, with much of the growth taking place in Victoria.
It accounted for 28.1 per cent of employment opportunities in the sector, compared with 22.9 per cent 12 months ago.
New South Wales continues to hold the majority of jobs (39.7 per cent) but did not grow that share over the last year.
Western Australia’s share of the industry jobs fell from 14.3 per cent in September 2013 to 9.8 per cent last month.
The rise in employment indicates growing confidence and investment across the industry, McLeay says. That is true when the data is divided between permanent jobs and temporary or casual employment.
For the first time since Labourforce began producing its index one year ago, the growth in permanent jobs (4.8 per cent) exceeded that of temporary jobs (4.1 per cent), albeit only narrowly.
McLeay says that confidence is likely to be matched with continued jobs growth over the coming months.
The index notes that managerial-level jobs had been below trend, but that is likely to fade as organisations hire more supervisory staff to lead the larger permanent workforce.