‘Knowledge is a commodity to be shared. For knowledge to pay dividends, it should not remain the monopoly of the selected few.’
– Moutasem Algharati
EST10’s Quarterly Industry News keeps you up-to-date and with your finger on the employment market pulse.
Access to talent in our current employment market remains boa-constricted tight. With 36% of employers expecting to increase their staffing levels over the next 3 months and unemployment rates predict to fall to 3.5% in early 2023 it seems unlikely this will change any time soon.
A strong recovery in late 2021 suggest economic activity has remained resilient to the Omicron outbreak and the east coast floods in early 2022. The underlying strength in the economy has been particularly evident in the labour market, where conditions are more robust than they have been for years.
The unemployment rate continues to fall, reaching a 13-year low of 3.9% in April of 2022. Additionally, after sitting at over 10% for the majority of 2020 and 2021 youth unemployment figures were down to 8.8%
Job vacancies continue to increase with February recording 423,500, an increase of 6.9% from November 2021 and huge 46.6% increase from February 2021. April marked the fifth consecutive month of job ad growth, rising 2.1% nationally, yet applications per job ad decreased for the fourth consecutive month, dropping 2.3%, according to the latest SEEK employment data. SEEK also reported that they had the highest number of jobs advertised in their 25-year history.
Recruitment in the admin space has picked up enormously for us and our office is busy, busy, busy! In an increasingly difficult candidate market, businesses are turning to recruitment agencies to support their hiring efforts.
The competition for talent remains fierce and as always, we recommend our clients work exclusively with their agencies and have all the processes lined up efficiently, with no delays!
Candidates are continuing to prioritise a hybrid working model with flexibility as a key motivator and for some, its non-negotiable. Shifts in values due to our experience with COVID-19 have brought this to the forefront. You can read more in my article for International Institute of Directors & Managers.
Businesses need to carefully navigate their offering and we suggest providing benefits beyond salary, such as additional superannuation contributions, health care, extra annual leave, travel allowance, educational rebates etc.
Job seeker behaviour remains a challenge.
Understandably, counteroffers are extremely high, making the decision-making at offer even harder for candidates. We are encouraging all our candidates to only go to market when they are sure they are ready to move jobs and have full transparency.
Salaries across the board are back to pre-pandemic levels with full-time earnings overall up 2.4% over 2021 and the highest annual rate recorded since December 2018. The annual rate of wage growth has risen for each of the last five quarters from a low point of 1.4 per cent in the December quarter 2020. However, it is important to note that earnings have not risen in line with the increased cost of living.
Our EST10 Salary Guide is hot off the press. Figures release from EST10’s 2022 Salary Guide show average increases for permanent administration positions up 13.5% and 15% for temporary roles.
‘If you don’t have an Executive Assistant, you are one.’
– Cameron Herold, The CEO Whisperer & Business Growth Guru
Demand for temporary workers continues to be very strong. The tight permanent candidate market means short term options to relive the pressure are sought.
Our borders opening and the return of the working holiday visa holders (WHV) has opened up the candidate flow. The great news is until 31st December WHV candidates can work with one employer beyond the usual 6-month limit.
With the constant squeeze for talent, a strategy of temp to perm is not what we would advocate currently- it reduces even further the pool of candidates for you to choose from. However, we strongly recommend hiring straight away great temp candidates you meet! Don’t wait for them to go to market!
The Great Regret!
Boomerangs, employees who return after leaving a company are on the rise! Our workforce is enticed by advancements, promotions, and salaries. It is unprecedented, but, the grass isn’t always greener! The abundance of opportunities won’t necessarily guarantee happiness or success. Be flexible with your exiting employees, keep the door wide and open, and make it easy for them to return.
Vinnies CEO Sleepout
Last year Rox participated in the Vinnies CEO Sleepout where $9.3 million dollars was raised to help break the cycle of homelessness and poverty in Australia. This wonderful initiative supports Vinnies tireless efforts in helping vulnerable Australians access the most basic of essential resources.
This year she will take part again and will be ‘sleeping rough’ to do her part on the 23rd of June 2022. We would love and appreciate greatly, any assistance with raising funds. The COVID-19 pandemic, increasing costs of living and other economic pressures have left more people facing homelessness. A donation of any amount would mean the world to someone in desperate need. Please donate here.
‘One of the things we often miss in succession planning is that it should be gradual and thoughtful, with lots of sharing of information and knowledge and perspective, so that it’s almost a non-event when it happens.’
– Anne M. Mulcahy, Former Chairperson and CEO of Xerox
At EST10, our marketing crew has been kept busy finding you the best speakers for our free monthly Masterclasses. And our Winter special guest speakers are as follows:
Register here for our next Masterclass on Tuesday, 21 June at 12:30 pm with genius Naturopath, David Jivan, also known as The Natural Health Guru. As an accredited Consultant Naturopath, Master Herbalist and Holistic Nutritionist with more than 33 years of full-time clinical experience, David has helped over 70,000 patients worldwide! In the Masterclass, David will be hosting a holistic journey of wellness and metabolic ingenuity focusing on the best NATURAL ways to boost your immunity.
Register here, for Anthony Carthew’s Masterclass on Wednesday, 20 July at 12:30pm. Anthony is an award-winning EA, mentor and speaker. Anthony will share how we can all help to shape our own organisation’s approach to Diversity and Inclusion. As we continue to navigate a world that fundamentally changed by a pandemic, we also see the intentional effort to end systemic racism, social injustice, and inequality. Learn about Anthony’s leadership of the Sydney Opera House (LGBTIQ+) Pride group, and the Opera House’s recently released Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging strategy, designed to reflect and respect the community in everything it does.
Register here, for Mark Berridge’s Masterclass on Wednesday, 10 August at 12:30pm . Mark is a speaker and author of ‘A Fraction Stronger’. A devastating cycling crash turned Mark’s world upside down with multiple fractures and a crushed vertebra. Learn of Mark’s inspiring story and he will share insights on actions and attitudes to show how strong we really can be. It is not about the fall – it’s about how you choose to get up!
As Founder and Managing Director at EST10, Roxanne has an all-encompassing role that includes building and growing the business, as well as actively recruiting and consulting.
After completing a Bachelor’s Degree at Monash University, Roxanne began her recruitment career with renowned recruiter Julia Ross. From there, Roxanne worked in HR and recruitment with a number of global players and boutique businesses throughout Australia, the UK, Singapore and Hong Kong for over 20 years. She has been responsible for managing large teams and projects, implementing RPO models, managing and assisting businesses to an IPO and assisting companies in setting up their recruitment teams and processes.
Following completion of her MBA at the Australian Graduate School of Management, Roxanne launched EST10 in July 2010. In doing so, she hoped to combine the flexibility and high touch service levels of boutique agencies with the structure and strategy afforded to larger firms. Roxanne believes in high-touch, high-care consulting and is always on the lookout for consultants that share this vision of recruitment.
