More job ads: Biggest Bay of Plenty rise in 3 years

A boost in the number of jobs being advertised in the Bay of Plenty is providing a glimmer of hope the sluggish economy might be picking up, but it’s come with a warning that there are still some tough times ahead.

Job ads increased in the Bay of Plenty by 16% in July compared with the previous month, according to the latest Seek NZ Employment Report.

That rise was the biggest out of any region in New Zealand and was the biggest hike seen in the Bay in more than three years.

Nationally, job ads increased month-on-month by 3% – the first time there’s been an increase nationally since January.

The Seek report showed the boost in job ads were in the retail and consumer products (up 24%), and hospitality and tourism (up 20%) sectors.

But the figures for the Bay of Plenty and nationally showed the number of jobs was still a long way off what they were a year ago – with the year-on-year trend being down 20% for the Bay of Plenty and 29% nationally.

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Bay Events managing director Dana McCurdy, whose company specialises in exhibition and events organising, said from her business’s perspective, confidence was looking better in the Bay of Plenty in the coming months.

McCurdy said they were in the process of putting together the Bay of Plenty Home and Outdoor Show in October and she was impressed with the number of sales so far.

She said that was a great indication businesses wanted to put themselves “back out there”, which would result in more jobs.

Dana McCurdy from Bay Events says business is looking positive in the coming months. Photo / Andrew Warner

“From a business standpoint, we are planning and booking so far out we can see what’s coming and the forward bookings are looking good.”

Cautious optimism

But 1st Call Recruitment general manager Andela Singleton said a rise in month-on-month figures should be viewed cautiously.

She said the year-on-year trend in the Bay of Plenty and New Zealand was far from where it needed to be.

The Bay of Plenty historically boomed more from September to April, given its tourism and hospitality vibe, Singleton said, and the monthly rise in job ads in July could have been a result of businesses planning for those months.

“There’s Christmas parties, end-of-year functions, it’s warmer, everyone’s happier, people are buying and getting ready for Christmas. But this isn’t a true indication of where the market is. We are still 20% down year-on-year and the economy is still really sluggish.”

Singleton said inflation was still too high and interest rates needed to come down, despite the Reserve Bank’s announcement last week it was cutting the Official Cash Rate by 25 basis points to 5.25% – the first reduction in four years.

“We know every industry is hurting significantly... We are seeing ghost towns throughout New Zealand because people just don’t have surplus cash... The kids’ shoes are a bit worn but we won’t buy new ones now, we’ll give it another month, we won’t do those $20k renovations and will do it after Christmas, that all has a flow-on effect in every industry.”

Singleton said their customers predicted the economy, and therefore the job market, wasn’t likely to improve significantly until the start of next year.

More from the report

The Seek report showed applications per job ad remained steady, rising 7% month-on-month.

Southland (-12%), Tasman (-4%) and Gisborne (-1%) were the only regions to record a monthly fall in job ads. Bay of Plenty saw the largest increase, with job ads rising by 16% from June – the largest monthly growth the region has experienced in over three years.

Nationally, most industries recorded an increase in job ads in July, some to a significant degree. The customer-facing industries saw notable growth – including retail and tourism.

But there was also significant growth (22%) in government and defence jobs. Consulting and strategy was the only industry where job ads declined in July, down 7%. Some industries, such as manufacturing, transport and logistics, and administration and office support roles, recorded no change month-on-month.

While white-collar and service industry roles drove the increase in job ads in the major cities, outside of the urban centres, the construction sector recorded a 14% increase in job ads, driven by rises in design and architecture and trades and services.

Seek country manager Rob Clark said while it was pleasing to see an increase in job ad volumes, this came after five months of consecutive declines, including an 8% fall in June.

”As seasonal industries that are prone to fluctuation, the rise in volumes in retail and consumer products and hospitality and tourism may be a sign of businesses preparing for busier seasons,” Clark said.

In some of the larger regions, including Bay of Plenty, Auckland and Wellington, July saw the largest monthly rise in job ads in over two years, or three years in the Bay of Plenty’s case.

”What hasn’t changed this month is the fierce competition among candidates, which shows no sign of abating,” Clark said.

Kelly Makiha is a senior journalist who has reported for the Rotorua Daily Post for more than 25 years, covering mainly police, court, human interest and social issues.