Regional Labour Demand
Regional job vacancies dipped by 1.8% to 73,713 in July 2024. This latest number of job ads is 18.3% lower than a year earlier.
In comparison, metro areas saw a smaller monthly decline of 1.5% but experienced a steeper annual drop of 18.8%.
Regional Australia job vacancies
Jobs and Skills Australia, monthly internet vacancies, RAI
The monthly changes in job vacancies varied across regional Australia (see table). The Northern Territory and Regional Queensland both recorded increases in vacancies.
The five regions with the largest monthly increases in vacancies in July 2024 were:
- Port Augusta & Eyre Peninsula up by 2.0% (592 compared to 581)
- Sunshine Coast up by 1.7% (3,208 compared to 3,154)
- Far North Queensland up by 1.4% (6,515 compared to 6,422)
- Gold Coast up by 1.3% (6,259 compared to 6,176)
- Darwin up by 1.2% (2,233 compared to 2,206)
Despite these monthly increases, all regions experienced an annual decline in July.
The five regions with the smallest annual drops in vacancies in July 2024 compared to July 2023 were:
- Fleurieu Peninsula & Murray Mallee down by 3.9%
- Regional Northern Territory down by 5.0%
- Hobart & Southeast Tasmania down by 5.1%
- Darwin down by 6.1%
- Launceston and Northeast Tasmania down by 7.1%
Regarding occupations in demand in July, vacancies are largest for Professional roles (26%), followed by Technicians and Trades roles (16%), Community and Personal Service roles (13%), and Clerical and Administrative roles (13%). The spread of job vacancies across occupation groups highlights the significant demand for skilled professionals and essential service providers in regional communities.
SOURCES The Internet Vacancy Index is updated monthly by Jobs and Skills Australia (https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/data/internet-vacancy-index). The RAI has an interactive Regional Job Vacancy map of the data showing vacancies in 37 regions across Australia (regionalaustralia.org.au/home/regional-jobs-vacancy-map).
Regional Australia is defined as regions outside the five major capital cities: Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth.