Hiring on the up but skills lacking

Job listings are up.

Job listings are up in Rotorua as local businesses appear to be more comfortable hiring permanent staff but not all positions are easily filled.

Trade Me Jobs data for the July-September quarter shows job listings in Rotorua were up 3 per cent compared with the same period last year, with 489 listings.

Jobs in education, transport and trades are Rotorua's biggest movers and customer service and administrative roles are the hardest positions to fill.

Personnel Resources consultant Jenna Cruickshank said local businesses were hiring more permanent staff.

"We've definitely seen an increase in the amount of permanent vacancies coming through us which is a sign that people are feeling a bit more confident and taking on permanent staff in their own payroll."

Improved financial security meant companies could make more strategic, long-term decisions, she said.

Talent ID recruitment agency director Kellie Hamlett said large numbers of jobseekers applied for customer service and administration roles, but few had the required skills and experience.

"The positions should be easy to fill," she said. "The people are there, but the skills that employers are looking for are not."

More training, not only in job-related skills, but also in "soft" skills was needed, Ms Hamlett said.

"Presentation skills, how to write and present CVs, how to interview, how to respond to potential employers and other basic skills are often lacking."

The under-25s were often lacking in these areas, she said.

Customer service, administrative and trades roles were employed locally but higher skilled positions were often filled by overseas applicants, she said.

However, the Rotorua Chamber of Commerce is warning while business confidence is starting to pick up in Rotorua, it is likely the city will eventually follow the nationwide trend of falling confidence. Chief executive Darrin Walsh said Rotorua was economically behind other centres in New Zealand so confidence sliding in other areas would likely translate to confidence slipping in Rotorua.

"The economy has been very, very flat," he said.

"There was a slight upturn in recent months, but commercial development is still relatively slow."

Filling skilled jobs was particularly difficult, as people often left Rotorua to upskill for jobs, Mr Walsh said.

Nationally, the employment market enjoyed solid growth in almost every region, with listings in the three months to September up 16.4 per cent on the same quarter last year.

Construction and architecture roles on Trade Me were up 41 per cent, property up 40 per cent and agriculture up 29 per cent - marking the three strongest areas of growth nationwide.

Head of Trade Me Jobs Peter Osborne said growth during the quarter was in the double digits for most areas.

"It's been wonderful to see job ad numbers go from strength to strength for a whole year now, and most of New Zealand has benefited from the ongoing trend.

"It's interesting to see the average number of applications has dipped, meaning that all things being equal, it would have been slightly easier for people to find work over recent months."