A BRIGHT FUTURE
DISCOVER THIS YEAR’S JOBS WITH THE BEST PROSPECTS. CARA JENKIN REPORTS
NEVER GIVE UP ON YOUR DREAM, THERE’S ALWAYS A WAY OF ACHIEVING IT
WORKERS who care for babies and new mums, and those who build us places to live and work had the top jobs advertised on SEEK this year.
Based on the largest job ad volumes and growth in the past 12 months, midwives and neonatal nurses (up 50 per cent) along with project engineers (55 per cent) were at the top of the list.
Strong growth was also recorded in caring roles in emergency services, with 42 per cent more ambulance paramedic jobs advertised.
SEEK spokeswoman Kendra Banks says the nation’s growing population and increasing life expectancy is fuelling jobs growth across engineering, emergency services, medical, health and nursing roles.
“We don’t expect demand on SEEK to slow any time soon across these top jobs of 2016, as Australians will always need new and/or improved infrastructure and people to care for us at all stages of life,” she says.
“Engineering directly supports Australia’s future infrastructure growth, so it’s not surprising our SEEK data revealed engineering roles as top jobs.
“These professionals are fundamental to help build residential and commercial projects to cater for our increasing population.
“Emergency service specialists and ambulance paramedics are vital services that have been and, we predict, will remain top jobs on SEEK as Australians live longer and our population continues to increase.”
She says jobs for clinical/medical researchers will remain strong because their services are essential for enhancing our wellbeing through medical advancements.
“As birthrates increase across Australia, we predict specialised neonatal nursing jobs will show continued ad growth on SEEK,” Banks says.
Neonatal nurse Ally Blackburn, 47, made a career change into the special care nursery two years ago. She always wanted to be a neonatal nurse but did not have the grades to get into the course, so worked as a mothercraft nurse instead.
But after having her six children, she decided to fulfil her dream, and went back to university to become a registered nurse when her youngest child was in primary school.
She moved into neonatal nursing after a year of working as an RN.
“I find there’s a demand (for neo- natal nurses) but I found it hard to get into,” she says. “It’s a specialised field, it’s hard to get accepted into it and get experience. I’d previously worked in special care units as a mothercraft nurse and that previous experience and life experience helped me.”
She says she enjoys being able to help the whole family, not just the babies. “I just believe, never give up on your dream, there’s always a way of achieving it, no matter how long it takes you or how you get there, you can get there with determination and perseverance,” she says.
The industry which recorded the biggest growth in job ads was information and communication technology – up 5 per cent.