Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences€¦ · Web viewThe department conducted a Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences in the Playford Local Government Area (LGA)

Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences

Playford Local Government Area

August 2012

1

Playford Local Government Area Report

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The document must be attributed as the ‘DEEWR - Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences – Playford Local Government Area, South Australia – August 2012’

This report was prepared by the Labour Market Research and Analysis Branch and is based on research conducted by the Branch.For further information: www.deewr.gov.auPh: 1800 059 439 | [email protected] ABN: 63 578 775 294

Labour Market Research and Analysis BranchAugust 2012 2

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Contents

Key Findings 4

Attachment A: Survey Results 6

Recruitment Experiences...........................................................................................6

Applicants and Suitability..........................................................................................7

Recruitment Methods and Job Services Australia......................................................7

Apprentices and Trainees and Staff Training..............................................................8

Future Recruitment Expectations..............................................................................8

Background...............................................................................................................9



Key FindingsThe department conducted a Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences in the Playford Local Government Area (LGA) as part of a survey of the Northern and Western Adelaide Priority Employment Area (PEA) in August 2012. These surveys are part of an ongoing research program in the department. More detailed survey results are at Attachment A.

There is significant disadvantage in the Playford LGA with low levels of educational attainment, a high proportion of the population in receipt of income support payments and a high incidence of jobless families.

Overall, the survey results suggest that labour market conditions in the Playford Local Government Area (LGA) are relatively soft. Further, unemployment in the LGA has been very high historically, despite a decrease from 14.2 per cent to 13.3 per cent over the 12 months to June 2012.1

The low proportion of unfilled vacancies and employers reporting recruitment difficulty in the year prior to the survey suggests some softness in the demand for labour.2

There are indications, however, that there may be an increase in recruitment activity in

the Playford LGA as there was a larger proportion of unfilled vacancies in recent recruitment rounds, compared with the Northern and Western Adelaide Priority Employment Area (PEA) overall.

Employers’ future recruitment expectations were reasonably strong, similar to all regions surveyed in the year to June 2012.

Despite some softness in the Playford LGA, a range of opportunities exist for job seekers.

There are opportunities for job seekers in occupations with low numbers of suitable applicants and high recruitment difficulty, such as Technicians and Trades Workers, Community and Personal Service Workers and Machinery Operators and Drivers.

Relatively low numbers of suitable applicants for Labourer vacancies indicate there may be opportunities for job seekers in lower-skilled and entry level occupations.

Employers most commonly reported insufficient experience or qualifications as the main reason applicants were considered unsuitable. Support for training, work experience and work readiness programs could assist job seekers.

There are opportunities for job seekers who are willing to seek employment in the broader Adelaide labour market.

1 DEEWR Small Area Labour Markets, June Quarter 2012.2 The average number of employees in businesses in the Playford LGA (16.8) was lower compared with the PEA overall (24.5), which may impact on the survey results as smaller employers recruit less frequently.



The survey results suggest that while recruitment activity in the PEA overall was slightly below average compared with all regions surveyed, there are opportunities for job seekers as Community and Personal Service Workers (such as Waiters, Child Carers and Bar Attendants and Baristas) and Technicians and Trades Workers (such as Chefs and Structural Steel and Welding Workers).

There may be opportunities for higher skilled workers, where employers expected to recruit for a range of occupations including Metal Fitters and Machinists and Motor Mechanics.

A high proportion of employers expected to recruit in the Accommodation and Food Services and Health Care and Social Assistance industries.

In a recent employer survey of capital cities, employers across Adelaide reported the strongest recruitment in the Accommodation and Food Services and Health Care and Social Assistance industries.3

3 Survey of Employers Recruitment Experiences in Capital Cities, March 2012



Attachment A: Survey Results

Recruitment Experiences The proportion of employers in the Playford LGA who recruited in the 12 months

preceding the survey (63 per cent) was similar to all regions surveyed in the 12 months to June 2012 (65 per cent)4.

The proportion of employers who recruited to increase staff in the LGA (40 per cent), was lower compared with all regions surveyed in the 12 months to June 2012 (48 per cent).

The number of vacancies per 100 staff was lower in the Playford LGA (14) compared with the Northern and Western Adelaide PEA (16) and all regions surveyed (19).

Table 1. Recruitment experiences in the 12 months preceding the survey

Playford LGA (August 2012)

NAWA PEA5

(August 2012)

All regions surveyed

(12 months to June 2012)

Proportion of employers who recruited

63% 72% 65%

- to increase staff 40% 39% 48%

- to replace staff 84% 88% 85%

Vacancies per 100 staff 14 16 19

Vacancies unfilled 3.4% 5.2% 6.3%

Recruiting employers who experienced difficulty

42% 47% 56%

The proportion of unfilled vacancies in employers most recent recruitment rounds was high (9.4 per cent) compared with the Northern and Western Adelaide PEA (5.7 per cent).

4 ibid5 Northern and Western Adelaide Priority Employment Area



Some 33 per cent of employers in both the Playford LGA and the Northern and Western Adelaide PEA had difficulty recruiting for their most recent vacancy, lower compared with all regions surveyed (44 per cent).

o The most common reasons for recruitment difficulty were finding people with the technical skill requirements for the job (41 per cent), the tight labour market (30 per cent) and finding people with the necessary soft skills (19 per cent).

o Employers reported difficulty recruiting for a range of occupations including for Child Carers, Sales Assistants (General), Hairdressers and Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers.

Applicants and Suitability There was an average of 8.0 applicants per vacancy, lower than the PEA

(11.4 applicants). The average number of suitable applicants (2.3) was also lower than the PEA (2.8 suitable applicants).

o An average of 0.4 applicants for Machinery Operators and Drivers vacancies were suitable.

o There was a low average number of applicants for Technicians and Trades Workers (3.0 applicants of whom 1.6 were suitable) and Community and Personal Service Workers (3.3 applicants of whom 1.3 were suitable).

o The most common reasons that applicants were considered unsuitable were insufficient experience (60 per cent), insufficient qualifications (33 per cent) and poor interview skills (33 per cent).

Figure 1. Average number of applicants and suitable applicants per vacancy

All regions surveyed (12 months to June 2012)

NAWA PEA (August 2012)

Playford LGA

Labourers

Sales Workers

Machinery Operators and Drivers

Clerical and Administrative Workers

Community and Personal Service Workers

Technicians and Trades Workers

Managers and Professionals

0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18

2.3

2.8

2.3

1.6

3.1

0.4

6.4

1.3

1.6

2.8

7.9

11.4

8.0

5.0

13.8

6.0

16.8

3.3

3.0

9.3

Average number of applicants per vacancy

Average number of suitable applicants per vacancy

Recruitment Methods and Job Services Australia Some 69 per cent of employers used formal methods in their most recent recruitment

round, while 41 per cent used informal methods. Some 30 per cent used informal methods only.



o The most common recruitment methods were the internet (36 per cent), word of mouth (36 per cent) and newspapers/magazines (25 per cent).

Some 12 per cent of recruiting employers used a JSA provider in the 12 months preceding the survey, of whom 80 per cent were satisfied with the service they received.

Apprentices and Trainees and Staff Training A slightly lower proportion of employers in the Playford LGA (29 per cent) reported

employing an apprentice or trainee compared with all regions surveyed (34 per cent).

o Employers in the Other Services6 (52 per cent) and Construction (48 per cent) industries were most likely to employ an apprentice or trainee.

A lower proportion (42 per cent) of employers in the Playford LGA had staff undertake nationally recognised training compared with the PEA (49 per cent).

The most common challenges reported by employers to providing training were the high cost (55 per cent) and the timing of training (35 per cent).

Future Recruitment Expectations Recruitment expectations in the LGA were similar to all regions surveyed. The proportion

of employers in the Playford LGA who expected to recruit in the 12 months following the survey (47 per cent) was only slightly lower compared with all regions surveyed (50 per cent). In addition, a similar proportion of employers (29 per cent) expected to increase staff numbers in the year following the survey compared with all regions surveyed (27 per cent).

One third of employers expected recruitment difficulty, compared with 44 per cent for all regions surveyed.

Table 2. Future recruitment expectations

Playford LGA (August 2012)

NAWA PEA(August 2012)

All regions surveyed (12 months to June

2012)

Will recruit 47% 52% 50%

Expect to increase staff 29% 30% 27%

Expect to reduce staff 3% 5% 5%

Will recruit an apprentice or trainee

20% 20% 22%

Expect difficulty 33% 36% 44%

6 The Other Services industry includes a broad range of personal services, such as hairdressing, religious, civil, professional and other interest groups; and selected repair and maintenance activities, including automotive repair.



Expect challenges 58% 65% 58%



Background The Playford Local Government Area (LGA), located within the Northern and Western

Adelaide Priority Employment Area (PEA), is one of ten LGAs identified in the 2011-2012 Budget to receive funding for measures to address disadvantage through the Better Futures Local Solutions initiative.

Employers in the Playford LGA were surveyed as part of the Northern and Western Adelaide PEA in August 2012. In total, 415 employers were surveyed (including 128 employers in the LGA), of whom 300 had recruited in the 12 months preceding the survey.

The LGA had an adult population (15 years and over) of 62,500 as of 2011. The adult population increased by 13 per cent over the 5 years to 2011, compared with the Northern and Western Adelaide PEA (7 per cent) and South Australia (5 per cent). 7

The unemployment rate in the LGA was 13.3 per cent in June 2012.8

Figure 2. Unemployment by region (DEEWR Small Area Labour Markets, June 2012)

Mar-08

Jun-08

Sep-08

Dec-08

Mar-09

Jun-09

Sep-09

Dec-09

Mar-10

Jun-10

Sep-10

Dec-10

Mar-11

Jun-11

Sep-11

Dec-11

Mar-12

Jun-12

0.0%

2.0%

4.0%

6.0%

8.0%

10.0%

12.0%

14.0%

16.0%

Playford LGANAWA PEASouth AustraliaAustralia

The participation rate in the Northern Adelaide and Western Adelaide Labour Force Regions is 60.2 per cent, compared with 62.3 per cent for South Australia and 64.8 per cent for Australia .9

Employment in the Northern Adelaide and Western Adelaide Labour Force Regions is projected to increase by 13,900 and 4,400 people respectively by 2016-1710.

7 ABS Estimated Resident Population, 2011.8 DEEWR Small Area Labour Markets, June 2012.9 ABS Labour Force Survey, August 201210 DEEWR Regional Projections to 2016-17.



A very high proportion (36 per cent) of the working age population in the Playford LGA receives an income support payment, compared with 21 per cent in South Australia.11

o The proportion receiving an unemployment benefit (11 per cent) was also significantly higher than the average for South Australia (6 per cent).

At the time of the 2011 Census, 45 per cent of those aged 25 to 34 had completed Year 12 compared with 68 per cent in South Australia.

The Northern and Western Adelaide Priority Employment Area includes the LGAs of Adelaide, Charles Sturt, Gawler, Playford, Port Adelaide Enfield, Salisbury, Tea Tree Gully, and West Torrens.

11 DEEWR administrative data, June 2012




Documents

Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences€¦ · Web viewThe department conducted a Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences in the Playford Local Government Area (LGA)