Advertised salaries grew rapidly over past year, but now slowing

Advertised salaries grew 5.1 per cent in the November 2023 quarter compared with the same period last year. Photo / Getty Images

Advertised salaries grew at a rapid pace in the year to November, rising 5.1 per cent annually compared with last year, according to Seek.

Seek’s Advertised Salary Index (ASI) - which measures the growth in advertised salaries for jobs posted on its website - showed quarterly growth in November was slowing, at an increase of 1.1 per cent compared with August’s quarterly growth of 1.3 per cent.

“The New Zealand labour market remains strong but has cooled in recent months. This is reflected in the Seek Advertised Salary Index, which shows a slight slowdown but still a rapid pace of growth overall,” said Rob Clark, Seek country manager.

“Despite the strong growth, advertised salaries are still not keeping pace with inflation, which is running at 5.6 per cent.

“For Kiwis feeling the pinch from the cost of living, this data confirms that advertised salaries are still growing rapidly, and one of the best ways to get a pay rise is to get a new job.”

The fastest growth in advertised salaries was in Canterbury, up 6.7 per cent year-on-year.

Growth was slower in Auckland (5.1 per cent) and Wellington (5.2 per cent).

The healthcare and medical industry had the fastest advertised salary growth in the year to November, rising 8.7 per cent. This was followed by mining, resources and energy (7.9 per cent) and banking and financial services (7 per cent).

Advertising, arts and media was the only industry to go backwards, with salary growth 1.8 per cent down in the November 2023 quarter compared with the same quarter in 2022. The industry was also only one of two to experience quarter-on-quarter negative growth (down 2 per cent) - the other being marketing and communications (down 0.1 per cent).

There were also year-on-year increases in advertised salaries for engineering (6.9 per cent), education and training (6 per cent), construction (5.8 per cent) and hospitality and tourism (4.2 per cent).

According to Stats NZ’s Labour Cost Index (LCI) - which measures the change in wages for all jobs - wage growth including overtime increased 4.3 per cent in the year to September 30, while the unadjusted LCI increased 5.8 per cent.