New Zealand Job Market More Promising Than UK

New Zealand Job Market More Promising Than UK: Randstad Workmonitor

Auckland, May 17, 2011: Confidence in the New Zealand job market is on the rise - and already higher than the UK – according to the recent Randstad Workmonitor report. The report, commissioned by specialist recruitment & HR services company, Randstad, shows 69 per cent of New Zealanders feel comfortable they would get a comparable job between now and six months time, a result higher than the United Kingdom (64 per cent).

These findings are supported by figures in the recent NZ Labour Market Report that found job advertising is rising strongly - up 1.6 per cent overall - and despite a patchwork economy, the labour market continues to tighten.

The Randstad Workmonitor report, published quarterly, tracks employee confidence and provides a comprehensive understanding of job market sentiment, and trends relating to the employment market.

New Zealand was included in the research for the first time in the January to March quarter, joining 28 countries across the world. The Randstad Workmonitor report is significant to New Zealand as it makes local and global trends visible over time.

Interestingly, of all the countries surveyed, the United Kingdom experienced the largest increase in confidence levels since the final quarter of 2010 (up 8 per cent). The fact that New Zealand’s confidence level is higher still, coupled with a growing shortage of both skilled and unskilled people, suggests employees can expect wage and salary inflation to pick up over the next two years.

Results found that 67 per cent of New Zealand employees are satisfied in their jobs. However, job satisfaction across the ditch in Australia is much higher (78 per cent) and the UK tracks behind both countries at 62 per cent.

General Manager of Randstad New Zealand, Paul Robinson, says these results show a definite shift in people’s perception of the job market.

“It is promising to see, as New Zealand winds down from the global financial crisis, people are becoming more confident in the local economy. It is positive the findings show job satisfaction is relatively high in New Zealand. We predict as the economy slowly improves, this percentage is likely to rise.”

The survey also found more than half of New Zealanders surveyed are motivated in terms of progressing their careers, with 58% per cent of people saying they are focused on getting a promotion.

When it comes to social media, New Zealand has some areas requiring improvement, but is not behind the eight ball. Findings from Randstad’s Workmonitor show 73 per cent of employees surveyed have an account on a social media website, and 42 per cent of those people updated their account in the last month.

“In the past, employees have used social media for personal rather than professional use, however, there seems to be a gradual shift in focus and greater use professionally. Employers are screening potential employees before making the decision to interview or hire, while jobseekers see the value in gaining valuable information about potential employers,” says Robinson.

Results from the survey found 46 per cent of people look for information on social media sites to get an idea about a company’s working culture. A further 47 per cent of people look for information to prepare for a job interview – the same number of people also believe social media can help them find a new job. Interestingly, 45 per cent of people will not apply to a potential employer if negative things are said about them on social media sites.

In terms of profiling themselves professionally, only four per cent of New Zealanders use social media such as LinkedIn, Facebook or Twitter to profile themselves as a potential employee. This figure is behind Australia at seven per cent and considerably behind the leader, India, where 27 per cent of people profile themselves professionally using social media. The quantitative study was conducted via an online questionnaire among a population aged 18-65, working a minimum of 24 hours a week in a paid job. Research was conducted from February 17 to 27, 2011.

ENDS

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