Information Sheet

Introduction

The Job Vacancy Monitoring Programme (JVMP) is designed to provide new insights into skill shortages in New Zealand. Information on job vacancies, especially those which are difficult to fill, will enable the Department of Labour to gain a better understanding of the extent and nature of skill shortages. This information sheet discusses key features of the Programme and identifies key 2006 publication dates for the various JVMP outputs.

Background

In response to emerging skill shortages throughout New Zealand, the Government launched the Skills Action Plan in May 2002. The whole-of-government strategy aimed to both improve the matching of people's skills to available job opportunities, and prevent future skill shortages by helping people to make informed decisions about education and training. Implementation of the plan resulted in the development of a number of initiatives to improve information on skill shortages. One of these was the establishment of the JVMP. The JVMP comprises of four main components:

1. a monthly analysis of job vacancies advertised in newspapers and internet job boards, known as the Job Vacancy Monitor (JVM);
2. the annual telephone Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised (SERA);
3. in-depth reports on selected occupations for which there are indications of shortages, known as the Occupational Skill Shortage Assessment Reports; and
4. the annual online survey of Information Technology (IT) Recruiters.

These sub-projects and their associated outputs are outlined in Figure 1.

Job Vacancy Monitor

The Job Vacancy Monitor (JVM) is a monthly analysis of job advertisements in selected editions of 25 major newspaper around New Zealand and two internet IT job boards. The purpose of the job ad series is to monitor changes in occupational labour markets. It also provides the basis of the sample for the SERA.

Each month all advertisements appearing in a single edition (usually the first Saturday of the month) of the 25 major newspapers are captured electronically.

A range of information is captured from each advertisement including: job title, location and number of vacancies. The job title is coded to a 5-digit occupation using the New Zealand Standard

Classification of Occupations 1999. Likewise, locationof the vacancy is coded to standard classifications of urban areas and regions. Advertisements that are repeated across newspapers are identified and flagged as duplicates.

In addition to monitoring newspaper advertisements, the JVM also monitors two internet IT job boards (Seek and Jobstuff). The number of new vacancies posted over the previous seven days is counted each Friday.

Publication of results

Summary results from the JVM are published in a monthly data report which is posted on the Department’s website.

In-depth analysis and interpretation of job vacancy trends is undertaken on a quarterly basis and incorporated into the Department’s Skills in the Labour Market report.

Survey of Employers Who Have recently Advertised

The Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised (SERA) consists of two sub-components, the SERA Extensive and the SERA Intensive. Both surveys draw their sample primarily from the JVM but are also supplemented, where necessary, from other sources of advertising such as professional and trade journals and internet job boards.

SERA Extensive

The SERA Extensive is a short telephone survey of employers who have advertised vacancies. The purpose of the survey is to identify occupations in which employers are having difficulty filling vacancies.

Employers who advertised within the sampling timeframe are asked whether they have filled their vacancy and how many suitable applicants applied. From this information, the Department is able to calculate a fill rate¹ and the average number of suitable applicants per vacancy for each occupation.

SERA Intensive

The SERA Intensive is an in-depth survey of employers to gain knowledge of the causes of shortages in selected occupations. In addition to asking the quantitative questions from the SERA Extensive, the Intensive survey also asks qualitative questions on the following issues:

• The supply and demand forces that are contributing to shortages;
• Implications for the employer of their inability to fill vacancies, and their response to this; and
• Skill sets that employers are unable to obtain in applicants to their vacancies.

Publication of results

The Department undertook an Intensive survey in each of the years 2003 to 2005, while an Extensive survey was conducted in 2003 and 2005. Results from the 2005 SERA Extensive can be located on the Department’s website.

Schedule for 2006

An Extensive survey will take place between June and September 2006. Results from this survey will be published on the Department’s website in December 2006.

Occupational Reports

Each of the key occupations that were included in the latest SERA Intensive are analysed in-depth to form a series of occupational reports. The reports draw on the results of the SERA surveys, as well as other data sources that provide additional insight into the supply and demand forces contributing to shortages in each of the key occupations.

These other data sources include:

• Enrolments and completions for courses related to the occupation;
• Migration of persons working in the occupation;
• Employment data from sources such as: the Household Labour Force Survey, the Census, and occupational associations; and
• Economic data related to the sector in which the occupation is concentrated.

Publication of results

The first suite of 16 reports covering selected trade occupations was published in April 2005, and 10 reports covering selected professional occupations were published in November 2005.

Schedule for 2006

A series of 14 trade reports will be published in June 2006² and a series of 11 professional reports will be published in October 2006³.

Information technology Recruiters Survey

Each year a survey of major information technology recruitment agencies is undertaken to assess the level of skill shortages in the IT profession. This survey investigates which specific software and hardware specialisations (e.g. Java programming) are in greatest demand, rather than investigating specific IT positions (e.g. systems architect). The findings from the survey provide an indication of the types of skills that are in greatest demand at the moment in the New Zealand information technology job market.

The information collected in this survey is intended to inform education/training and immigration policy, as well as to provide valuable information to prospective IT students making career decisions.

Publication of results

The IT Recruiters survey was first conducted in 2003, and has been repeated annually since then. Results from the November 2005 survey are available on the Department’s website.

Schedule for 2006

The 2006 survey will be published in November 2006.

For more information regarding the JVMP or any of its associated sub-projects contact: info@dol.govt.nz

End notes

1 The ‘fill rate’ is the proportion of vacancies that were filled within six to eight weeks (trades) or eight to ten weeks (professionals) of advertising, and is a key indicator of skill shortage. Occupations with fill rates of lower than 80% are typically regarded as being in shortage, while fill rates lower than 40% usually indicate that the occupation is in acute shortage.

2. The 14 trade occupations to be analysed are: Auto electrician, boat builder, bricklayer, cabinet maker, carpenter, chef, diesel mechanic, electrician, fitter and turner, line mechanic, plumber, printing machinist, sheet metal worker, and heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration mechanic.

3. The 11 professional occupations to be analysed are: Accountant, civil engineer, early childhood teacher, IT professional, mechanical engineer, midwife, nurse, occupational therapist, optometrist, pharmacist, and social worker.