Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences
Ipswich-Logan Priority Employment Area and the
Inala-Richlands Region
January 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.au
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Table of Contents
The Ipswich-Logan Priority Employment Area and the Inala-Richlands Region 3
Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences 3
Key Findings 4
Recruitment Experiences in the 12 Months Preceding the Survey 4
Most Recent Recruitment Activity 5
Applicants and Suitability 7
Apprentices and Trainees 8
Job Services Australia (JSA) and Recruitment Methods 8
Impact of the Floods 8
Future Recruitment Expectations 9
Opportunities for Job Seekers 10
Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations ii
The Ipswich-Logan Priority Employment Area and the Inala-Richlands Region
· The Ipswich-Logan Priority Employment Area (PEA), to the south of Brisbane, comprises the Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Ipswich and Logan[1]. The PEA was previously surveyed in February 2010 and April 2009.
· For the first time the neighbouring disadvantaged area of Inala-Richlands was included in the survey which comprises the Statistical Local Areas (SLAs) of Darra-Sumner, Doolandella-Forest Lake, Durack, Ellen Grove, Inala, Richlands and Wacol.
· In December 2011, the unemployment rates for the Ipswich-Logan PEA (7.1 per cent) and Inala-Richlands (9.4 per cent) were both higher than the overall rate for Queensland (5.5 per cent), although slightly improved since December 2010 (when the unemployment rates were 7.6percent and 10.7 per cent respectively)[2].
- The region contains some SLAs with very high levels of labour market disadvantage, including Woodridge (which has an unemployment rate of 19.6 per cent), Kingston (19.5percent), Richlands (17.1 per cent) and Inala (16.8 per cent)2.
· The region was affected by the Queensland flood disaster in January 2011, when the Bremer and Brisbane rivers broke their banks and flooded many homes and businesses. Some questions on the impact of the floods on businesses were included in this survey.
· The Manufacturing industry is the largest employing industry in the Ipswich-Logan PEA (17percent of total employment at the time of the 2006 Census), compared with 10 per cent overall in Queensland.
Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences
· In order to gain a better understanding of labour market conditions in the local area the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) conducted a Survey of Employers’ Recruitment Experiences in January 2012. The survey was conducted by telephone interview, with 366 responses received on behalf of businesses in the Priority Employment Area and a further 116 from Inala-Richlands surveyed.
· The survey collected information on:
- the recruitment of employees in the 12 months preceding the survey;
- the experience employers had recruiting for their most recent vacancy; and
- Recruitment expectations in the 12 months following the survey.
Key Findings
· Survey results indicate that labour market conditions in the Ipswich-Logan PEA remain soft. Recruitment activity was slightly below the average for all regions, although there has been some improvement since the region was last surveyed in February 2010. There were relatively few unfilled vacancies in both the Ipswich-Logan PEA and Inala-Richlands, low levels of recruitment difficulty and a large number of applicants for job vacancies for some occupations.
· Employers reported difficulty filling vacancies for some occupation categories. One in five vacancies remained unfilled for Technicians and Trades Workers occupations, particularly for Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers. In addition, a relatively high proportion of employers had difficulty in recruiting for Technicians and Trades Workers and Community and Personal Service Workers, and often had to re-advertise or extend recruitment processes to fill vacancies in these occupation categories.
· Labour market demand may strengthen as future recruitment expectations were stronger than when the PEA was previously surveyed.
Recruitment Experiences in the 12 Months Preceding the Survey
· Recruitment activity in the Ipswich-Logan PEA was moderate in the 12 months preceding the survey in January 2012.
- Two thirds of employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA had recruited in the 12 months preceding the survey, which was the same as the previous survey in February2010 but slightly lower compared with all regions surveyed in the 12 months to March2012 (68 per cent).
- Employers across the PEA reported proportionally more vacancies in the 12 months preceding the survey (18 vacancies per 100 employees) compared with the 2010 survey of the region (14 vacancies per 100 employees). In Inala-Richlands there were 14 vacancies per 100 employees (data are not available for earlier periods).
- A larger proportion of employers had recruited due to turnover (87 per cent) than due to business growth (42 per cent). Recruitment due to business growth was lower compared with all regions (50 per cent).
- Recruitment activity was highest in the Health Care and Social Assistance and Accommodation and Food Services industries (both 82 per cent). Recruitment in the Manufacturing industry, the largest employing industry in the PEA, was slightly below the PEA average (61 per cent of employers recruited).
· A significantly smaller proportion of vacancies remained unfilled in the Ipswich-Logan PEA (4.2per cent) compared with all regions surveyed in the 12 months to March 2012 (7.4percent). A similarly low proportion of vacancies remained unfilled in Inala-Richlands (3.9percent). The low unfill rate is consistent with the previous surveys in the Ipswich-Logan PEA (3.7 per cent in 2010 and 4.4 per cent in 2009) and with the higher levels of unemployment across the region.
- Unfilled vacancies were most common in the Other Services[3] (19.0 per cent of vacancies remained unfilled), Professional, Scientific and Technical Services (13.2 per cent) and Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services (11.1 per cent) industries. On the other hand, only 6percent of vacancies remained unfilled in the Manufacturing industry.
· While a greater proportion of employers reported difficulty recruiting (47 per cent) compared with the previous survey (41 per cent), the proportion was lower compared with all regions (59per cent).
- Employers most commonly reporting difficulty filling vacancies in the 12 months preceding the survey were in the Other Services (75 per cent) and Health Care and Social Assistance (64 per cent) industries.
Table 1. Recruitment experiences in the 12 months preceding the survey
Ipswich-Logan PEA(January 2012) / Inala-Richlands
(January 2012) / Ipswich-Logan PEA
(February 2010) / All regions
(12 months to March 2012)
Proportion of employers who recruited / 66% / 73% / 66% / 68%
- to increase staff / 42% / 46% / 57% / 50%
- to replace staff / 87% / 89% / 79% / 86%
Vacancies per 100 employees / 18 / 14 / 14 / 20
Proportion of recruiting employers who experienced difficulty / 47% / 48% / 41% / 59%
Proportion of vacancies unfilled / 4.2% / 3.9% / 3.7% / 7.4%
Most Recent Recruitment Activity
Employers were asked about their most recent recruitment experience.
· A lower proportion of recent vacancies remained unfilled in the Ipswich-Logan PEA (3.9percent) and in Inala-Richlands (4.4 per cent) compared with all regions surveyed (10.1percent).
- The majority of unfilled vacancies in the Ipswich-Logan PEA were in the Technicians and Trades Workers occupation group (22.2 per cent of vacancies remained unfilled), most commonly for Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers. By contrast, there were relatively few unfilled vacancies in other occupation groups.
- The high proportion of unfilled vacancies for Technicians and Trades Workers in 2012 was in contrast with proportionally fewer unfilled vacancies in previous surveys.
- There was also a high proportion of unfilled vacancies for Technicians and Trades Workers (17.9 per cent) in Inala-Richlands, with few unfilled vacancies in other occupation groups.
- While the majority of unfilled vacancies were for higher skilled occupations, 74 per cent of recent vacancies in the Ipswich-Logan PEA and Inala-Richlands were for lower skilled occupations.
Figure 1. Proportion of unfilled vacancies in the most recent recruitment round
· Some 35 per cent of employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA reported difficulty recruiting for their most recent vacancies, compared with 47 per cent for all regions.
- Recruitment difficulty was most commonly reported by employers recruiting for Technicians and Trades Workers (especially Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers and Metal Fitters and Machinists) and Community and Personal Service Workers (especially Child Carers) occupations.
- The most common reasons for recruitment difficulty were the technical skill requirements for the job (43 per cent), particularly for the Technicians and Trades Workers occupation group (74 per cent).
· Overall, 15 per cent of employers were forced to re-advertise vacancies or extend their latest recruitment round, mainly due to a lack of suitable applicants. The proportion was higher for employers recruiting for Community and Personal Service Workers (27 per cent) and Technicians and Trades Workers (26 per cent) occupations.
· Employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA reported difficulty recruiting for a range of occupations (see Table 2).
Table 2. Occupations difficult to fill by skill level
Bachelor Degree or Higher VET QualificationsMetal Fitters and Machinists* / Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers*
Early Childhood (Pre-primary School) Teachers / Motor Mechanics
Chefs / Electricians*
Retail Managers
Other occupations
Child Carers / General Clerks
Other Miscellaneous Labourers* / Sales Assistants (General) *
Bus and Coach Drivers / Sales Representatives
Truck Drivers / Bar Attendants and Baristas
Storepersons
* Occupation also reported as difficult to fill in the February 2010 survey of the region.
Applicants and suitability
· On average, there were 11.2 applicants for each recent vacancy in the Ipswich-Logan PEA, of whom an average of 2.9 were considered suitable by employers. By comparison, there were on average 6.8 applicants and 2.1suitable applicants across all regions.
- Inala-Richlands had a similarly high number of applicants, with an average of 10.5applicants per vacancy, of whom 2.5 were considered suitable.
- Employers recruiting for Labourers had little choice in suitable applicants, with an average of fewer than two applicants considered suitable.
- The most common reasons employers considered applicants to be unsuitable were insufficient experience (60 per cent) and insufficient qualifications (40 per cent).
Figure 2. Average number of applicants and suitable applicants per vacancy
· Around 14 per cent of employers who filled vacancies in the Ipswich-Logan PEA did so with job seekers who required development, compared with 19 per cent across all regions and 20percent when the region was last surveyed in 2010. The decrease since the previous survey was mostly due to a smaller proportion of staff requiring development in lower skilled occupations.
- The proportion of employers who hired staff requiring development was highest for those recruiting for Technicians and Trades Workers and Community and Personal Service Workers occupations (both 30 per cent).
Apprentices and Trainees
· Some 34 per cent of responding employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA employ an apprentice and/or trainee, a slight increase since the region was last surveyed in 2010 (30percent).
- 27 per cent of employers who had an apprentice and/or trainee identified challenges employing them, with the most common being a lack of general work readiness (51percent).
· One in five (20 per cent) employers anticipated recruiting an apprentice and/or trainee in the 12 months following the survey, slightly lower than the average for all regions (23percent). This was more common in the Other Services (35 per cent), Construction (32per cent) and Health Care and Social Assistance (30 per cent) industries.
Job Services Australia (JSA) and Recruitment Methods
· Overall, 12 per cent of employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA used a Job Services Australia (JSA) provider when recruiting in the 12 months preceding the survey.
- Of the employers who had used a JSA provider, 87 per cent were satisfied with the service.
· More than three quarters of employers used formal recruitment methods in the Ipswich-Logan PEA (76 per cent) and Inala-Richlands (79 per cent) in their most recent recruitment round.
- The most common recruitment method was the internet (55 per cent).
- 31 per cent of employers recruiting for Labourers and 29 per cent recruiting for Sales Workers occupations used only informal recruiting methods (such as word of mouth), highlighting the need for job seekers to be proactive in their job search activities.
Impact of the Floods
· Overall, 59 per cent of recruiting employers in the Ipswich-Logan PEA and Inala-Richlands were affected by the January 2011 floods and 39percent of recruiting employers reported their staffing levels were affected.
- The most common impacts of the flood were the inability of staff to come to work (43percent) and employers reducing staff hours (24 per cent).
- Of the employers who reported their staffing levels were affected by the floods, 8percent reported that their staffing levels were still being impacted at the time of the survey.
· The impact of the floods varied by region, with a higher proportion of recruiting employers affected by floods in the Ipswich LGA and Inala-Richlands compared with the Logan LGA (see Table 3).
Table 3. Impact of the January 2011 floods
Proportion of recruiting employers / Ipswich LGA / Logan LGA / Inala-RichlandsAffected by the floods / 65% / 49% / 67%
Staffing levels affected by the flood / 44% / 27% / 53%
Future Recruitment Expectations
· Recruitment expectations in the Ipswich-Logan PEA were stronger than when the region was previously surveyed in February 2010 and April 2009 and when compared with all regions surveyed.
- More than half (55 per cent) of the employers in the PEA expected to recruit in the 12 months following the survey, compared with 38 per cent for the February 2010 survey.
- Future recruitment expectations for the PEA were particularly high in the Accommodation and Food Services (77 per cent), Rental, Hiring and Real Estate Services (72 per cent) and Health Care and Social Assistance (59 per cent) industries.
- The occupations most commonly mentioned by employers expecting to recruit in the PEA include General Clerks, Storepersons, Structural Steel and Welding Trades Workers and Truck Drivers.