Construction and insurance employers most positive - survey

14 June 2011

New Zealand employer hiring hits most optimistic level since before recession: Manpower

Survey of over 650 New Zealand employers shows construction and insurance
employers most positive

New Zealand (14 June 2011) – The Manpower Employment Outlook Survey released today has revealed a resilient New Zealand job market, as it reaches the most optimistic levels of hiring confidence since before the recession.

In New Zealand, 26 per cent of companies expect to increase hiring, while the number of companies planning to decrease hiring is at 9 per cent. Once adjusted to remove seasonal variations in the data, the country’s Net Employment Outlook has increased four percentage points quarter-over-quarter to +19%.

The Net Employment Outlook is derived by taking the percentage of employers anticipating an increase in hiring activity and subtracting from this the percentage of employers expecting to see a decrease in employment at their location in the next quarter.

According to Michelle Visser, General Manager of Manpower New Zealand, the Christchurch reconstruction effort is playing a major role in the buoyancy of the country’s employment market.

“The survey results show a consistent and extremely strong demand for mining & construction workers, sitting at +42 per cent,” said Ms Visser.

“The Christchurch reconstruction project is shaping up to be one of the biggest construction projects that New Zealand has ever seen. As we move from the clean-up to rebuilding stage, initial reconstruction workers – particularly project managers and quantity surveyors – will be in high demand.”

The Finance, Insurance & Real Estate sector is also strong, with a 10 percentage point increase in hiring intentions, now sitting at +23%.

“This sector has been bolstered by an increased demand for insurance professionals to assess the rebuilding effort in Christchurch,” said Ms Visser.

Hiring intentions have increased across the country, with employers in Christchurch (+19%), Wellington (+14%) and Auckland (+20%) all reporting a two percentage point increase in hiring intentions for the coming quarter.

According to Ms Visser, the jobs demand in both Auckland and Christchurch is coming primarily from the Services sector. Employers in this sector have indicated they will continue with strong hiring intentions for the next three months, with a net employment outlook of +22%.

“The jobs most in demand for the Services sector right now are primarily IT: both for project managers as well as technical roles like business analysts, database administrators and technical sales professionals. These roles are expected to continue in hot demand for the coming quarter.”

But Ms Visser says all eyes are on the Christchurch rebuild, as projected hiring intentions remain strong and skills shortages begin to threaten the timelines of reconstruction projects.

“The fact is, if the reconstruction effort was to ramp up right now, New Zealand would have nowhere near the number of people needed who are ready to complete these projects,” said Ms Visser. “The scale of the reconstruction means that we’re going to see a huge increase in demand for all construction roles, with project managers and quantity surveyors being just the start. Skilled tradespeople and managerial roles will also be in high demand down the track.”

Ms Visser says there is still a lot companies can do to alleviate the pressure from these skills shortages.

“Construction and project development companies need to map out the bigger picture to forecast the skills they need, when they will be needed and where they might get them from.

“For example, the housing downturn across the country means there are people with domestic housing trade skills available and looking for work. Up-skilling these workers to be able to contribute to the Canterbury rebuild means we’re opening up these jobs to New Zealanders first, before searching elsewhere.”

Ms Visser says that increasing vocational training in New Zealand to meet demand will also be vital.

“Vocational training is top of mind. The Christchurch earthquakes and the rebuilding effort has exacerbated skills shortages that already existed, so there is a real need to increase the work that was already being done. We want to encourage underemployed and underskilled New Zealanders to take part in these types of programs that will not only give them work, but will contribute to a greater goal.”

Net Employment Outlook Comparison - Industry

Q3 2011 Quarter-on-quarter
change Year-on-year
change
National +19% +4% +2%
Finance, Insurance & Real Estate +20% +10% -1%
Mining & Construction +42% 0% +26%
Manufacturing +23% +2% +3%
Transport & Utilities +21% -1% +10%
Public
Admin/Education +6% +8% -3%
Services +22% +1% 0%
Wholesale & Retail Trade +10% +4% -2%

Net Employment Outlook Comparison – Region

Q3 2011 Quarter-on-quarter
change Year-on-year
change
National +19% +4% +2%
Auckland +20% +2% +2%
Christchurch +19% +2% +6%
Wellington +14% +2% -5%

ENDS

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