Bay of Plenty job listings up 43 per cent but Rotorua recruiter says entry level roles hard to fill

Job listings are up 43 per cent in the Bay of Plenty. Photo / Getty Images

Want a water-blasting job working 50 hours a week at $23 an hour? Apparently, no one does.

Job listings are up 43 per cent in the Bay of Plenty and Rotorua recruiters say good candidates are finding work easily.

But one recruiter says entry-level roles are hard to fill and candidates don't seem willing to start "at the bottom of the food chain".

Government figures show more than 5000 people in the city receive unemployment benefit.

Top Staff Solutions managing director Kirsten Bangs said more applicants were coming forward for specialised jobs than entry-level roles.

"I have never seen it before in my whole career," she said.

"We just can't get people to pursue a career and start at the bottom of the food chain," she said.

Vacancies for skilled jobs were "historically really hard to fill", she said.

A recent job listing for a CAD designer had already received a "good number of applicants with quite a lot of experience".

Meanwhile, Bangs had been working to fill sawmill worker and water-blasting roles since before the August lockdown without success.

"I have a client offering 50 hours a week at $23 an hour and we just can't get someone to do it [water blasting]."

There were also "more jobs than candidates" in Rotorua, which was putting increased pressure on employers and recruiters.

Bangs said last week she was trying to fill 21 vacancies, some listed before lockdown.

But she said it wasn't easy for all job seekers in Rotorua.

"A lot of them are saying they apply for heaps of jobs and they never get a response."

One 64-year-old candidate had recently found permanent employment at a manufacturing company after 11 months without a job.

The man ​applied for more than 100 jobs during that time, only attending three job interviews.

"He had been turned down for every one of them. He believed this was because of his age."

He previously worked at a manufacturing company for 14 years, but he was made redundant after last year's lockdown.

"There are lots of statistics out there to suggest that over 60 is the hardest age to be looking for work."

Rotorua Chamber of Commerce chief executive Bryce Heard. Photo / NZME

The latest Trade Me data showed job listing numbers in the Bay of Plenty were up 43 per cent in the September quarter, compared to the same period in 2020.

The biggest increases were in customer service, government & council, sales, manufacturing and operations, IT and retail categories.

Rotorua Business Chamber chief executive Bryce Heard said it was "misleading" to compare spot figures during times of fluctuating behaviour.

He believed a more reliable database would be to look at unemployment levels nationwide.

He said in Rotorua more than 5000 people were on jobseeker support benefits.

"A year ago we were entering the first impact period of Covid. There was a lot of nervousness in the job market, with expectations of closures and lay-offs."

The region was now seeing "a bit more" confidence in employment, with widespread Government support, he said.

Ministry of Social Development figures for the quarter ending in June, the latest available, showed 5127 people in Rotorua on a Jobseeker Support benefit.

OneStaff Rotorua area manager Dylan Lee said in the Bay of Plenty's "candidate-driven" market, demand was "very high" for good employees.

"People who are looking for employment are finding work quickly and without difficulty."

This demand for talent has resulted in businesses re-evaluating their offerings to attract staff, Lee said.

OneStaff Rotorua area manager Dylan Lee. Photo / Supplied

He had noticed an increase in permanent recruitment due to a "desire" to keep strong candidates engaged.

However, some clients were losing "good employee options" by putting "arbitrary hoops" in place for prospective candidates.

While some were mandatory for health & safety or role requirements, he said businesses needed to "carefully" look at these barriers to ensure they were relevant to the role.

"The more requirements that are applied, the more they should be compensating the candidate in wage rates or a preferential employment environment to stand out from their competitors."

He said all sectors were "under pressure", which was consistent across the businesses the company recruited for in the Bay.

Personnel Resources / Temp Resources Ltd Rotorua manager Angelique Scott said the business had been "bombarded" with listings and was taking on more staff itself to meet demand.

"Our temp roles are up, our permanent roles are up. We are busy day-to-day," Scott said.

"We used to have five of us working here, now we have eight."

The recruitment agency, which deals with office-based roles, was seeing strong candidates "snapped up" very quickly.

"If you are an awesome candidate you can be presented to a company and they will see if they can fit you into the business. They know there are not as many candidates around, so they need to consider everybody [we] send through."

Skilled candidates for accounting, human resources and health & safety roles were in the most demand, she said.

Some companies were choosing to offer healthcare packages and flexible working arrangements, which some candidates found "really attractive", she said.