Job opportunities have ‘progressed’ long term, ABS finds

The supply of jobs in Australia has increased over the last decade and remains somewhat stable, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has reported.

To provide a holistic view of how the nation has been progressing over the long term, in a range of areas from the environment to society and the economy, the ABS released the latest edition of its Measures of Australia's Progress (MAP) dataset.

One of the most pertinent findings was that based on the unemployment rate as an indicator, the provision of jobs in the country has progressed over the last ten years. The ABS reported that between 2002 and 2012, Australia's average annual unemployment rate dropped from 6.4 per cent to 5.2 per cent.

However, it would be wise to take these figures with a pinch of salt. These numbers come on the back of recent reports from Roy Morgan Research and the ABS itself revealing that the unemployment rate increased during October this year, with the immediate forecast not reflecting the trends over the last decade.

With unemployment higher than in previous years, recruitment agencies must ensure they are doing all they can to quickly match candidates to the jobs that suit them best. Specialist recruitment software can provide the tools and capabilities you need to do so.

One plus from the MAP 2013 was that it reported higher levels of efficiency in the Australian workforce.

In making this claim, the ABS assessed the labour force underutilisation rate, which looks at whether the economy is providing sufficient employment opportunities for those in the workforce. This rate dropped from 13.4 per cent in 2002 to 10.3 per cent in 2008, before picking up again to reach 12.5 per cent in 2012.

One of the measures your recruitment agency can take to provide opportunities to job hunters and help bring the labour force underutilisation rate back down is to become more efficient in its own operations. Efficiency software such as FastTrack360 is the best way to streamline your agency's tasks.