ABS survey finds a third of Australian businesses can’t find staff

Australian businesses are desperate for staff with one in three companies that are looking to hire unable to find suitable workers, according to new ABS research.

Almost one in three Australian companies looking to hire staff can’t find suitable workers, according to an ABS survey.

Almost a third of Australian businesses are having difficulty finding suitable staff as the national worker shortage continues to frustrate employers.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics reports that 31 per cent of employing businesses can‘t find staff, with that number growing to 66 per cent for large companies and 62 per cent for medium-sized firms. A further 29 per cent of small businesses told the ABS they struggled to find suitable workers.

ABS head of industry statistics Tom Joseph says nearly half (46 per cent) of small businesses affected were impacted to a great extent.

The most frequently reported reasons were a lack of applicants (79 per cent) and applicants not having the required skills (59 per cent).

“This corresponds with the strengthening job market and the current low unemployment rate,” Mr Joseph said.

“Businesses reported having difficulty finding suitable building trade workers, clerical workers, labourers, sales staff, and hospitality workers. Other in demand jobs include engineering trades and ICT professionals”.

Australia companies will find it difficult to compete with countries like the United States which is offering up to 6 per cent wage growth, analysts say. (PICTURE: OLIVIER DOULIERY / AFP)

Simon Moss, the chief operating officer of The Recruiting Company, which focuses on IT recruitment, said candidates have a lot more opportunities and companies are taking bigger steps to keep employees.

“Within the IT industry, there is always a skill shortage, even before this, for things like software development and emerging technology roles,” he said.

“There has never been such a big gap between the number of vacancies and the number of candidates.

“Companies are having to come to terms with the fact that it is very difficult to hire people.

“Companies know they can’t afford to lose them, so they are doing more to keep them, like offering more compensation, flexibility, and development.”

According to Ryan Felsman, senior economist at CommSec, the job market is still feeling the effects of previous border closures and reduced migration, which are contributing to the labour shortage.

“There is a large backlog of migrants Visas' that are awaiting to be processed so until we start seeing more people coming in, industries such as hospitality are going to continue to really struggle”.

“The other factor is flight capacity and travel mobility. People are still concerned about heath and the number of flights to Australia is still lower than before. Flights are also costing more as post pandemic travel resumes”.

“We are seeing a very competitive global job market at the moment because of the pandemic … The global employment market is very tight, foreign workers are in high demand and Australia is going to have to compete with other countries to source these skilled migrants.

According to the ABS, Australia lost 88,880 migrants between 2010 and 2021, the first loss since 1946, while immigration fell 71 per cent.

Mr Felsman also said Australia is going to have difficulties with salary offerings.

“It’s going to be difficult for Australia to compete when it comes to salaries with places like the United States who are offering up to 6 per cent wage growth,” he said.

The unemployment rate in Australia is at its lowest level since 1974, sitting at 3.9 per cent.

Mr Felsman said he doesn't see the situation improving until at least 2023.

“Realistically the situation most likely won’t improve until at least 2023. If interest rates are lifted the economy will show and there may be less hiring of workers” he said.