Which jobs will be red-hot in 2014?

There will be many job openings across Australia, with:

• 20% of employers expecting to hire more staff, and
• 193,000 new jobs forecast to be created nationally in the year to August 2014.

And as the dust from the resources boom settles, most of the new jobs and business growth in 2014 are not in the mining sector.

The biggest numbers of new jobs are for:

• Carers & Aides
• Education professionals
• Finance professionals
• Construction trades
• Sales Assistants & Salespeople

Strong demand is expected for:

• ‘Green skills’
• Information professionals
• Health Diagnostic & Therapy professionals
• Corporate Managers
• Health & Welfare Support Workers
• Carers & Aides

The hottest jobs

Carers & Aides

The aging population and increasing demand for both residential and home-based care workers is helping drive Australia's service-based labour market.

The Health Care and Social Assistance industry is projected to:

• grow by 13% to 2017
• provide 178,000 new jobs for all skill levels
• generate 57,200 jobs for Carers & Aides

Education professionals

The simple maths shows there are more school-aged children, and fewer primary and secondary teachers to teach them. As many as 25% teachers are eligible to retire in the next five years.

The Education & Training industry is projected to:

• grow by 7.2% to 2017
• generate 64,000 new jobs
• provide 45,000 openings for mainly primary & secondary teachers

Finance professionals

Professionals with finance and accounting qualifications will be highly sought after in 2014.

• Accountants rank number 3 in the top 20 growing occupations
• 21,000 new accountants jobs projected to 2017
• 86% of companies find it challenging to locate skilled financial professionals

Construction trades

Construction is the third largest employing industry in Australia and is expected to experience a 10% growth in coming years.

• The Housing Industry Association now forecasts over 160,500 new dwellings will be built in the 2013-14 financial year. This is 10,000 more buildings than was initially forecast for 2013-14.
• 50,000 job openings for Carpenters & Joiners to 2017

Trends for 2014

Part-time & flexible roles

Part-time jobs will continue to grow faster than full-time jobs. Many employees, particularly baby boomers and those in the professional occupations, are increasingly seeking flexibility and a work-life balance. Almost one-third of Australians work part-time hours.

• Increasing wages - Average weekly earnings are expected to grow by more than 4% to $1,251 by November 2014.
• Green credentials - ‘Green skills’ will be important in all industries as we move to a greener economy. From jobs in the production of clean energy, to environmental reporting and accounting practices, sustainability is becoming more popular.
• Higher qualifications = more job opportunities
• People with a Certificate IV, diploma or degree will continue to claim the bulk of new jobs.Over the past decade, jobs for people with a Certificate IV or higher have accounted for 43.6% of total employment growth, and this trend will continue.
• Job opportunities for workers with a bachelor degree or higher are increasing. Between now and 2017, one out of every three new jobs created will be for an employee with a bachelor degree or higher.

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