More companies looking to hire staff

More businesses are lining up to hire staff than at any time in the past six years, showing a dramatic skills shortage, an employment survey shows.

Recruitment company Hudson's six-monthly survey also showed the Government was one of the biggest recruiters, with hiring plans at a three-year high.

And it said the election this year appeared to have had little impact on hiring plans.

The survey showed a net 43.5 per cent of almost 1700 businesses surveyed expected to increase staff numbers in the next six months. Hudson New Zealand general manager Marc Burrage said businesses were optimistic about hiring.

"With growth predicted to continue, albeit at a reduced rate, they are still desperate to find the right people."

A net 49 per cent of Government agencies surveyed expected to hire more staff in the next six months, up 6.5 percentage points on the last survey.

The survey backs up the ANZ Bank job survey this month, which showed the Wellington job market holding up, while other regions fell back from recent highs. Wellington's job market has been buoyed by big construction projects and a growing Government sector.

The Government employs about 300,000 workers, including teachers, police, doctors and nurses. Between 1999, when Labour took office, and late last year the figure had risen by more than 33,000.

Hudson said the unemployment rate was already one of the lowest in the world, at 3.9 per cent, and at its lowest since the mid-1980s, so companies were trying to keep their workforce, especially top performers.

There was a strong demand for the "knowledge worker", which should lead to higher wages for that sector.

IT companies were the most positive, with a net 63 per cent planning to hire more staff, ahead of the Government sector on 49 per cent, and the financial services and professional services sectors both on about 46 per cent.

- NZPA