Ann: GENERAL: TME: Kiwi job market steady, but un

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TME
10/04/2012 11:26
GENERAL

REL: 1126 HRS Trade Me Group Limited

GENERAL: TME: Kiwi job market steady, but unspectacular

MEDIA RELEASE
10 April 2012

Kiwi job market steady, but unspectacular

The New Zealand employment market was steady and continued its double-digit
growth over the past quarter, according to an analysis of more than 39,000
roles on Trade Me Jobs. The number of advertised vacancies was up 18 per cent
on a year ago, echoing the 21 per cent increase seen in the fourth quarter of
2011.

Head of Trade Me Jobs, Pete Ashby, said the state of the Kiwi job market was
quite different to one year ago. "In the same quarter last year, job and
salary growth was surprisingly strong and exceeded our expectations,
especially given the anticipated impact of the Christchurch earthquakes. This
has been a key factor behind lower year-on-year growth, though there's no
question the market has softened."

Salaries were "flat as a pancake" compared to a year ago (down 0.2%), and Mr
Ashby attributed this to a lukewarm economy. "Employers' confidence remains
on tenterhooks with the economy in a weaker state than many predicted, and
demand for skilled workers is softening. However, recent updates point to
economic growth kicking in later this year as the post-quake rebuild ramps
up."

Hard hats, high viz vests & calculators prominent

Mr Ashby said it was no surprise to see the rebuilding effort in Christchurch
driving massive growth in construction & architecture and trade & services
roles, with listings up 65% and 47% respectively on a year ago. "As building
sites emerge, and redevelopment plans are drawn up, the market is especially
hot for site managers, labourers, machine operators, and painters &
decorators."

With the rebuild expected to take up to 20 years to complete, Mr Ashby said
demand for different roles would wax and wane, but accountants would remain
in constant demand. "As the economy heads in a positive direction, the need
for numerate, financially savvy people increases as businesses grow and look
to cope with the rising workload. We've seen listings from Christchurch
employers and recruiters hunting these number-crunchers leap 60 per cent on a
year ago."

In the regions

There was an increase in job listings in the three major metropolitan
centres, but Canterbury showed explosive growth, with advertised roles up 81%
compared to a year ago, a period which included the February earthquake and
its immediate aftermath. Both Wellington and Auckland were stagnant with job
listing growth below the national average - up 3% and 4% respectively.

Mr Ashby said public sector employment confidence was down in the capital, as
Government cost-cutting and reorganisation made employees anxious about their
job security. "The nervousness in the state sector is dragging down the
overall picture, with private sector employees much more upbeat, as set out
in Westpac-McDermott Miller's recent research."

In Auckland, Manukau was a strong performer in terms of job listings with
significant employer demand for IT programmers and testers, as well as
accountants. Elsewhere in the City of Sails, the number of listings for
accounting roles (up 43%) was also a stand-out, followed by construction (up
31%) and trades & services (up 13%).

Agriculture, fishing & forestry had a strong quarter in terms of listings
growth, up 32% on a year ago. Mr Ashby said the cornerstone of the Kiwi
economy "hit a rosy patch", underpinned by the solid performance of dairy
farming. "It will be interesting to see whether the 15-cent cut in the
forecast pay-out announced by Fonterra last month has a knock-on effect and
dents the hiring aspirations of the dairy sector."

Crystal ball gazing

Mr Ashby said he expected to see several factors at play in the Kiwi job
market over the coming months.

"We're confident the employment market will keep shunting in the right
direction, as economic growth ticks up in the second half of 2012. The
rebuild in Christchurch is going to be a massive lever, as well as spending
in the agricultural sector, and the return of consumer confidence in a slowly
strengthening property market. On the flipside, continued pessimism in the
public sector seems here to stay for some time."
-ends-

CONTACT: Paul Ford, Investor Relations, Trade Me, Ph 04 803 2611

MORE INFO: The full employment survey results are set out in the tables
below.

Trade Me Jobs employment survey results: January-March 2012

1. Listings growth by job: Q1/2012

Job Change vs. Q4/2011 Change vs. Q1/2011
Accounting 14.7 % 44.3 %
Agriculture, fishing & forestry  8.7 % 32.0 %
Banking, finance & insurance - 17.1% - 13.7%
Construction & architecture 24.9 % 65.4 %
Customer Service 0.6 % 17.6 %
Education 4.0 % 1.1 %
Engineering - 12.1% 21.0 %
Government & council - 12.3% 19.8 %
Healthcare 5.9 % 21.1 %
Hospitality & tourism 0.1 % 8.6 %
HR & recruitment 3.4 % - 1.8%
IT - 5.8% 5.1 %
Legal - 1.7% - 50.3%
Manufacturing & operations - 4.8% 20.3 %
Marketing, media & comms 12.2 % 0.4 %
Office & administration  12.8 % 11.9 %
Retail - 0.5% 10.3 %
Sales 3.8 % 7.3 %
Science & technology 12.7 % 19.2 %
Trades & services 8.6 % 46.9 %
Transport & logistics - 2.7% 26.0 %
Overall 2.4 % 18.1 %

2. Average rates of pay by job (full-time jobs only): Q1/2012

  Highest paid Pay rate ($)

1 IT  architects 125,505
2 IT sales & pre-sales 125,124
3 IT project management 118,889
4 IT functional consultant 112,100
5 Sales managers 110,925
  Lowest paid Pay rate ($)

1 Kitchen staff 33,009
2 Bar staff & baristas 33,101
3 Retail assistants 33,573
4 Waiting staff 33,983
5 Receptionists 34,846

3. Listings growth by region for Q1/2012

Region Change vs. Q4/2011 Change vs. Q1/2011
Auckland - 2.7% 4.0 %
Bay of Plenty 7.5 % 14.4 %
Canterbury 8.8 % 80.7 %
Gisborne - 9.1% - 9.1%
Hawke's Bay 3.0 % 16.1 %
Manawatu / Wanganui 26.3 % 20.2 %
Marlborough 11.0 % 42.9 %
Nelson / Tasman  26.1 % 66.5 %
Northland 3.9 % 38.3 %
Otago 5.3 % 39.3 %
Southland - 11.7% 20.8 %
Taranaki 5.2 % 19.9 %
Waikato  6.8 % 21.9 %
Wellington 0.2 % 3.2 %
West Coast - 4.5% 35.0 %
National 2.4 % 18.1 %

4. Average rates of pay by region (full-time jobs only)

  Highest paid Pay rate ($)

1 Wellington City  76,917
2 Auckland City 76,193
3 West Coast 71,725
4 Central Hawke's Bay 63,439
5 Whangarei 62,069

   Lowest paid Pay rate ($)

1 Waipa 44,897
2 Marlborough 46,113
3 Queenstown 46,693
4 Selwyn 46,815
5 Hastings 47,477

NB: Segments with less than 50 jobs excluded.

About Trade Me Jobs
Trade Me Jobs (www.trademe.co.nz/jobs) is Trade Me's employment website. Full
details of pay by profession for full-time jobs listed between July and
December 2011 were published in the Trade Me Jobs Salary Guide.
End CA:00221652 For:TME    Type:GENERAL    Time:2012-04-10 11:26:17