Career opportunities slashed, but hopes rise we’ve turned a corner

JOB opportunities were slashed in half last month, as the Australian job market copped the full force of COVID-19 shutdowns.

But jobseeker sentiment is beginning to improve and early May data shows an uptick in hiring activity, suggesting the nation may have turned a corner. SEEK’s first Employment Index since the government imposed widespread business closures revealed job ads were down 50 per cent between March and April.

Tellingly, the human resources and recruitment sector bore the brunt of the sudden downturn, with available roles dropping 69 per cent month on month. It was followed by legal (down 67 per cent), administration and office support (64 per cent), sport and recreation (63 per cent), consulting and strategy (62 per cent) and sales (61 per cent) sectors.

New Government plans to lift restrictions, however, were expected to boost confidence among employers.

SEEK Australia and New

Zealand managing director Kendra Banks said early May figures showed the rate of job advertising decline was easing.

In the week ending May 10, SEEK job ads were down 60 per cent compared with the same week last year. But at the lowest point in April — the week ending April 19 — they were down 69 per cent year on year.

“This 10 per cent shift means we may have turned a corner after reaching a particularly low point of decline,” Ms Banks said.

“In the first two weeks of May, we have seen job ad volumes slowly creep back up, which aligns to the will of governments to get the economy moving and get people back into jobs.

“We know this will take some time, which is why we are cautious to be too positive at this point.”

Exclusive figures from SEEK revealed workers’ perceptions of the job market were also improving. In April, 58 per cent of Australians were optimistic about their future employment prospects, up from 56 per cent in March.