The job search is one of life’s most stressful yet rewarding experiences. Endless job applications, nerve-wracking interviews and exciting job offers.
But what are the vital facts and figures surrounding the Australian job search? Well, we combed the web’s most reputable sources and put all of our findings right here.
Enjoy!
Key job search statistics
- Across 2023, 9.7 million people were searching for a job in Australia
- The average Australian looks for a job every 3 years and 4 months
- 1 in 3 people would take a pay cut to achieve a better work-life balance
- More than a third of Australians want the option to work from home
- 1 in 3 Australian job vacancies are never advertised publicly
- Only 35% of job adverts display the salary for the role
- There are 26 job seekers competing for every entry-level job
- Recruiters only spend 6-8 seconds reviewing a resume
- 41% of job seekers have faced age discrimination
- Only 1 in 4 resumes make it past ATS to be read by a human
- 43% of companies are using AI to interview candidates
- By 2030 14% of employees could need to change their careers due to AI advancements
Job seekers in Australia
How many people are searching for jobs in Australia, who are they, and what do they expect from a new job?
How many people are searching for jobs?
- According to the ABS there were 1.8 million unemployed people looking for work in Australia at the end of 2023, which represents around 8% of the working age population.
- A Gartner survey found that more than half (57%) of employed Australians were engaged in “passive job hunting” which means looking for better job opportunities whilst still employed.
- Across Australia during the whole of 2023 a total of 9.7m people were searching for a job at some point.
- In 2023 2.9 million people successfully secured and started new jobs.
How often do people look for new jobs?
The average Australian looks for a new job every 3 years and 4 months according to data from McCrindle.
Why do Australians look for new jobs?
A recent report from PWC found that 38% of workers are planning to leave their job over the next 12 months, and these are the most common reasons why.
| Top 10 reasons why Australians quit jobs |
|---|
| 1. Unhappy with line manger |
| 2. Feeling unappreciated |
| 3. Dissatisfied with team performance |
| 4. Not being paid enough |
| 5. Poor work-life balance |
| 6. Poor relationships with co-workers |
| 7. Commute is too long |
| 8. Lack of progression opportunities |
| 9. Lack of recognition from management |
| 10. Concerns about the company’s stability |
Source: Gartner Global Labor Market Survey, 2Q22
What do job seekers want from a new job?
According to a survey conducted by jobs giant Seek, 65% of workers say that their priorities in the workplace have changed dramatically since the Covid-19 pandemic.
- Almost half (48%) of people state that work-life-balance is the most important factor in a job.
- Over a third of Australians now want the option to work from home at least some of the time.
- 40% of job seekers are expecting a pay rise in 2024.
- 1 in 3 people would take a pay cut to achieve a better work-life balance.
Job vacancies in Australia
How many jobs are available in Australia and where are they?
Number of job vacancies in Australia
As of February 2024, there are 368,800 job vacancies across the country, a decrease of 6.1% from November 2023 (ABS data)
Job vacancies per state and territory
| State/Territory | Number of vacancies |
|---|---|
| New South Wales | 129,100 |
| Victoria | 105,800 |
| Queensland | 77,700 |
| Western Australia | 55,100 |
| South Australia | 25,000 |
| Australian Capital Territory | 11,400 |
| Tasmania | 7,100 |
| Northern Territory | 6,400 |
Source: Australian Bureau of Statistics
City with the best chances of landing a job
According to job website Ethical Jobs, the nation’s capital Canberra is statistically the city where you are most likely to find a job, with almost 2 vacancies available per job seeker – the highest ratio in the country.
How many jobs are never advertised?
Jobsandskills.gov.au recently reported that one third of jobs in Australia are never advertised, but instead filled through recommendations or networking.
Job applications and resumes
The numbers behind searching and applying for jobs in Australia.
How hard is it to find a job?
The ABS report that 8 in 10 job seekers find job seeking difficult with the most common reasons being, too many other applicants competing for the same job and insufficient work experience.
How many job seekers per vacancy?
- Across all sectors there are 1.1 job openings per job seeker in Australia
- In December 2023, SBS News reported that there are 26 job seekers competing for every 1 entry-level job, an increase of almost double from the previous year.
How many applications per job vacancy?
The average job advert will receive 267 applications before closing.
What percentage of job adverts show the salary on offer?
Although pay transparency is increasing in Australia, a recent report from job board Indeed, found that at the end of 2023 only 35% of job adverts displayed the salary for the role, despite the fact that 4 in 5 job seekers want to see this information before applying.
How long does it take to find a job?
According to a Seek poll, 25% of job seekers spend between 3-6 months looking for a new job.
How many applications to land a job?
The average person has to send 162 applications to land a job.
How long do recruiters spend reading resumes?
According to multiple studies, recruiters only spend 6-8 seconds reading a resume when open it for the first time.
How many Australians lie in job applications?
Our latest study found that 42% of Australians have lied on their job applications.
Candidate discrimination statistics
A job seeker survey from Software advice found that 41% of candidates have faced discrimination due to their age, 37% due to gender, and 19% due to ethnicity.
Our recent study into nepotism found that 7 in 10 people have gotten a contact, an interview, or a job via a personal connection.
Do companies use ATS scanners?
4 in 5 Australian employers use ATS (Applicant Tracking Systems) to scan resumes automatically and remove unsuitable ones from the process before they are seen by a human eye.
Globally 95% of Fortune 500 companies (many of whom hire Australian staff) use ATS scanning software.
A study by recruitment firm Preptel, found that only 1 in 4 resumes make it past the ATS filter and get read by a recruiter.
Job interviews
The job interview is a pivotal moment in the job-hunting process – here are the figures behind it.
Job interview selection and process
- On average only 2% of candidates who apply for any given job advert are selected for interview.
- A LinkedIn survey found that 41% of employers say that they would not interview a candidate if they can’t find any presence of them online.
- The average interview lasts 28 minutes and is carried out by at least one staff member.
- 2 in 5 recruiters would instantly reject a candidate who did not send cover letter with their resume.
- 8 in 10 resumes are rejected because they do not have any relevant experience for the job.
- 45% of recruiters think that most resumes are poorly formatted.
The most common reasons why employers reject candidates at interview stage
A LinkedIn survey of hiring managers found that these were the top 8 reasons why candidates were rejected at interview stage.
- Poor Communication
- Poor Body Language
- Lack of Professionalism
- Questions About Salary/Benefits
- Mismatch with Company Culture
- General Courtesy
- Negative Attitude
- Lack of Passion and no Career Goal
The most common reasons why candidates reject job offers from employers
Conversely, a job seeker survey from Software Advice found that these are the top 3 reasons why candidates reject a job offer from a company.
- 42% said that the salary did not meet their expectations.
- 15% received a more attractive counter-offer from their existing employer.
- 13% turned a job down because it did not offer remote working.
Video interviews
- There has been a 57% increase in the use of video interviews from 2019 – 2024
- More than half of employers continue to use video interviews now that Covid restrictions are lifted.
Are companies using automated video interviews (AI)?
- In February 2024 Adecco reported that 43% of companies are using some form of AI to interview potential hires – which involves candidates answering automated questions whilst being filmed, without a person from the employer being present.
Most popular job websites in Australia
Web traffic data from Semrush.com shows that these are the top 5 job websites in Australia by volume of monthly users.
| Website | Monthly Australian users |
|---|---|
| Seek.com.au | 5.4M |
| Indeed.com | 2.5M |
| Jora.com | 468K |
| Glassdoor.com.au | 259K |
| Talent.com | 184K |
Social media job search
How big a role does social media play in the modern job search?
-
- Research from Seek shows that 70% of job seekers use social media in their job search.
- LinkedIn found that 84% of Australians are open to hearing about opportunities via social media.
- A survey by Hays found that 7 out of 10 Australian job seekers use social media to research a company before applying for a job with them.
- The most popular social platforms that job seekers use to find jobs are:
- LinkedIn (71%)
- Facebook (35%)
- Twitter (21%)
- Instagram (18%)
- 73% of Australian employers use social media for recruitment purposes, of which 96% use LinkedIn to find candidates.
- Jobvite found that just over half of recruiters use social media to communicate with candidates.
Impact of AI on job search
How will AI advancements impact the future of job search and careers?
- A study by the McKinsey Global Institute reports that by 2030, at least 14% of employees globally could need to change their careers due to AI advancements.
- A Goldman Sachs study found that 300 million jobs could be replaced by AI automation.
- A LinkedIn survey of HR professionals and hiring mangers found that 68% were very hopeful that generative AI could be used to save them time and improve their processes, citing the following positive outcomes they hope to achieve:
- Automating repetitive work (74% of respondents)
- Making it quicker and easier to find candidates (67%)
- Making it faster and easier to engage candidates (59%)
Sources
We gathered the data on this page from a range of reputable sources – check them out below.
- Australian Bureau of Statistics – Employment and unemployment: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment
- Gartner – HR Survey Shows Active Job Searching Has Declined: https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2022-08-02–gartner-hr-survey-shows-active-job-searching-has-dec
- PWC – What workers want: https://www.pwc.com.au/future-of-work-design-for-the-future/what-workers-want-winning-the-war-for-talent.html
- Seek – 8 things Australians expect in a workplace: https://www.seek.com.au/employer/hiring-advice/9-things-employees-expect-in-a-workplace-in-2021
- McCrindle – Job mobility in Australia: https://mccrindle.com.au/article/job-mobility-in-australia/
- The Sydney Morning Herald – Almost 3 million Australians started a new job last year: https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/almost-3-million-australians-started-a-new-job-last-year-here-s-why-20230830-p5e0iw.html
- Australian Bureau of Statistics – Job Vacancies, Australia: https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/jobs/job-vacancies-australia/latest-release
- Ethical Jobs – Where’s the easiest place in Australia to find a job: https://www.ethicaljobs.com.au/blog/wheres-the-easiest-place-in-australia-to-find-a-job-the-answer-may-surprise-you
- Financial Review – There are more jobs than job seekers: https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/there-are-more-jobs-than-job-seekers-that-s-good-news-for-pay-rises-20220817-p5bal5
- SBS News – The 560,000 Australian job seekers being ‘left behind’ each year: https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/the-560-000-australian-job-seekers-being-left-behind-each-year/38v6jr23f
- Seek – How long does it REALLY take to find a new job: https://www.seek.com.au/career-advice/article/how-long-does-it-really-take-to-find-a-new-job
- Entree Recruitment – do not use an Applicant Tracking System: https://www.entree.com.au/blog/2019/03/why-entree-recruitment-unlike-80-percent-of-firms-do-not-use-an-applicant-tracking-system
- The Elite Collective – The Truth About Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS): https://theelitecollective.com.au/the-truth-about-applicant-tracking-systems-ats/
- Adecco – AI’s Impact on Your Virtual First Impression: https://www.adecco.com.au/ais-impact-on-your-virtual-first-impression-navigating-video-interviews-with-confidence/
- LinkedIn – Hiring statistics: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/top-100-hiring-statistics-2022-rinku-thakkar
- Software advice – What do job applicants in Australia think of the recruitment process?: https://www.softwareadvice.com.au/blog/3179/recruitment-process-candidate-perceptions-australia
- LinkedIn – Reasons why candidates are rejected after interview: https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/top-9-reasons-reject-candidates-after-interview-pocket-hrms-0clqf
- Indeed Hiring Lab – Pay Transparency Rising in Newly Created Australian Jobs: https://www.hiringlab.org/au/blog/2023/07/07/pay-transparency-rising-in-newly-created-australian-jobs
- Northbridge – Social Media Recruitment in Australia: https://www.nbridge.com.au/blog/social-media-recruitment-in-australia
- Nexford University – How Will Artificial Intelligence Affect Jobs 2024-2030: https://www.nexford.edu/insights/how-will-ai-affect-jobs
- LinkedIn – How AI Will Change Hiring: https://www.linkedin.com/business/talent/blog/talent-acquisition/how-ai-will-change-hiring
- Australian Government – Recruitment methods used by employers: https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au/sites/default/files/2023-05/recruitment_methods_-_australia_3.pdf