Job ads growth slowed in fourth quarter: Trade Me   13 Jan 2012

Hannah Lynch

Job advertisements on the Trade Me website rose 21 percent in the fourth quarter, slowing from a pace of 30 percent three months earlier and signalling some steam is coming out of labour market.

“The job market has clearly shifted down a gear,” said Pete Ashby, head of Trade Me Jobs. “We’d hoped the employment market would improve after the Rugby World Cup and the November election but the reverse has happened.”

A Westpac McDermott Miller survey this week found employee confidence in the job market dropped to a two-year low in the December quarter. The government has vowed to trim the head count of public servants during the current term.

“There is certainly anxiety in the public sector after the November election and broad uncertainty surrounding the ongoing turmoil in the European financial markets,” Ashby said.

The Auckland super city helped drive a 47 percent rise in specialist government and council roles in the December quarter from a year earlier, while civil and structural engineers’ listings were up 39 percent. Accountants were also in hot demand, with advertisements up 36 percent and retail witnessed significant growth in listings, up 22 percent.

Canterbury and Southland were stand-out regions, with both reporting 61 percent growth in job listings compared to a year ago, followed by Otago on 40 percent.

(BusinessDesk)

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