SEEK Employment Report
According to the latest SEEK NZ Employment Report, job ads fell 2% in May, seasonally adjusted, following two months of growth. Job ads are now 8% lower y/y which is the slowest rate of decline since November 2022, indicating a moderation of the steep declines of the past two years. Applications per job ad have peaked again, rising 2% m/m, making for an extremely high level of competition among candidates for the job ads on offer.
There were small pockets of growth in the Public Service and Professional Services sectors in May. Healthcare & Medical and Community Services & Development were the largest industries to record job ad growth in May, rising 3% and 2% respectively m/m.
Three regions recorded monthly job ad growth in May: Taranaki (6%), Wellington (2%) and Southland (1%). Wellington is the only one of the larger regions where job ads have grown y/y (2%), the first annual rise in two-and-a-half years.
SEEK Country Manager Rob Clark says: 'The trend data tells a clear picture and that is one of flat ad volumes for the past eight months. After close to two years of near uninterrupted decline between 2022 and 2024, this shows that volumes have stabilised and are even beginning to see some pockets of growth. Wellington, which was particularly impacted by falling demand toward the end of 2023 and the beginning of 2024, has recorded broad growth in ad volumes over the past eleven months. It was one of only three regions where job ads rose month-on-month, along with Southland and Taranaki. While the decline in demand for workers has slowed, candidate appetite has not abated in the same way, rising to the highest on record again this month.'
*Applications per job ad are recorded with a one-month lag. Data shown in this report refers to April data.
SEEK Advertised Salary Index - Quarterly to May 2025
The quarterly SEEK NZ Advertised Salary Index (ASI) measures the growth in advertised salaries for jobs posted on SEEK in New Zealand. This report examines national trends up to the quarter ending May 2025.
Advertised salary growth rose by 0.6% q/q in the quarter to May, while annual advertised salary growth slowed to 2.4% y/y in May, with the rate of decline for annual growth slowing.
SEEK Country Manager Rob Clark says: 'Annual average advertised salary growth continues to slow, despite faster growth in the most recent quarter. Average annual growth across the Rest of the South Island has picked up in the most recent quarter, likely driven by notable employment growth in Otago which has added a lot of jobs over the past year. Around half of all industries are seeing their average advertised salaries growing faster than inflation, which is good news for job seekers in these industries.'
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