New Rotorua figures: More jobs and better pay

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More jobs with fatter pay packets are being advertised in Rotorua as employers up the ante to get staff.

The latest quarterly figures from Trade Me - to September - show there has been a 5.2 per cent increase year on year for job listings in Rotorua alongside a 4.2 per cent jump in advertised salaries over the same time frames.

Rotorua's average advertised salary was now $55,261 compared with $53,023 last year while Tauranga went from $54,154 to $56,298 in the third quarter.

Trade Me head of jobs Jeremy Wade said it had expected the average wage to rise for a long time because the job market had been extremely strong.

''As the number of vacancies increase in Rotorua and Tauranga, so does the average salary as employers attempt to lure candidates with larger pay packets.

''If the number of job vacancies continue to increase at this rate for skilled roles, we'd expect there to be increased pressure on average salaries which is great news for job hunters.''

The trades and services and hospitality and tourism sectors had the most vacancies while a doggy daycare assistant attracted the most views at 4300 followed by a motel manager at 3800 views.

Rotorua Chamber of Commerce president John McRae said there had been an output of business growth with local companies expanding and new start-ups.

''That reflects the underlying investment coming from the business sector.''

For the past three to four years he had not stopped advertising for accountants in his own firm, he said.

The Chamber was also driving its talent campaign in conjunction with Rotorua Economic Development to source skilled people from Auckland and Tauranga that it hoped to announce before Christmas.

Destination Rotorua chief executive Michelle Templer said finding the "right" people was critical because tourism businesses relied on delivering great experiences.

"Having a team that is customer-focused is vital. It is hard work but rewarding and operators in Rotorua work to keep talent and support training of permanent staff.

"A real challenge was scaling up for the peak/high season over summer and finding people that can fit in with the culture of the business.''

Some businesses provided or were exploring accommodation options to support recruitment and retention over the summer months, she said.

Deputy mayor and Rotorua Lakes Council Sustainable Economic Development portfolio leader Dave Donaldson said a lift in salaries was good for many reasons.

"For people's standard of living and for our local economy in terms of spending and it also helps make Rotorua an attractive place to live and work.''

Talent ID director Kellie Hamlett said her Rotorua office was also ''definitely seeing some progression with wage rates''.

The skills shortages was a very real issue for businesses in today's employment market, she said.

Lee Brothers managing director Paul Ingram said there was a lack of qualified tradespeople.

"They just don't exist."

They had recruited a sales manager and trades assistant this year and the cabinets and joinery company established in 1926 was currently looking to employ an apprentice.

''The reason we ended up recruiting a trades assistant was because we couldn't find a qualified tradesperson.''

To combat the problem the first step was training apprentices but the industry was cyclical and aligned to the construction sector which tended to slow down if there was a dip in the economy.

By the numbers

• A 5.2 per cent increase in job listings year-on-year for third quarter to end of September.

• Trades and services and hospitality and tourism sectors had the most vacancies in 2017 third quarter.

• Most popular third quarter listing was doggy daycare assistant (4300 views) and a motel manager (3800 views).

• Rotorua's average salary was $55,261 in third quarter up 4.2 per cent on last year from $53,023.

- Source: Trade Me