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Table of Contents
Tasmania ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 14
Engineers Australia
Australian Engineering Employment Vacancies 4
Introduction With the economy softening overall towards the end of 2019, engineering vacancies had still not recovered to pre–
GFC levels at the beginning of 2020, but were making progress towards similar numbers to when records began in
January 2006. The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and associated restrictions saw Australian vacancies trending
downwards from March to June 2020. However, steady recovery is evident during the second half of 2020 and
continues to trend upward.
Key Points
• Engineering vacancies across Australia in 2020 declined in response to COVID-19 restrictions, from May to
June, but began a steady recovery from July onwards.
• Over the 12 months period Australian engineering vacancies contracted by 6%. However, in the 6 months
from July growth rates were up 8% and 24% in the last three months from October to December 2020.
• Except for the ACT, all states and territories were recording upward trends in engineering vacancies
throughout the second half of 2020.
• South Australia, Western Australia, Tasmania, and the Northern Territory all finished the year recording
higher numbers of advertised engineering vacancies in December than in January 2020.
• Civil engineers remain most in demand, followed by mining engineers, and industrial, mechanical and
production engineers.
• The least vacancies were recorded for chemical engineers, followed by electronics engineers and
telecommunications engineering professionals.
Data source and content
This report investigates trends in engineering employment in Australia through analysis of engineering vacancies data. The original data is produced by the Department of Employment, Skills, Small and Family Business (the Department) and was released on 13 January 2021. The Department produces a monthly Internet Vacancy Index (IVI) through the Labour Market Information Portal (LMIP) based on new advertisements on CareerOne, Seek and JobSearch. Duplicate advertisements are removed, and data has been indexed to 100 from January 2019 to analyse trends over the last 12 months. Job vacancies provide a valuable gauge of the Australian labour market. The Beveridge Curve1 provides the theoretical underpinning for analysis of the relationship between unemployment and vacancy levels. In general, as vacancies increase, unemployment falls and as vacancies fall unemployment increases. This report should not be read as a report on specific job numbers but rather as a valuable analysis of vacancy trends which provides a broad indication of the direction of the engineering labour market. This report includes Australian, state and territory trends as well as trends in a range of specific engineering occupations. This report includes trends in the following engineering occupations:
• Civil engineering professionals (unit group 2332). This includes civil engineers, geotechnical engineers, quantity surveyors, structural engineers and transport engineers.
• Chemical and materials engineers (unit group 2331). This includes chemical engineers and materials engineers.
• Electrical engineers (unit group 2333). This includes electrical engineers only. • Electronics engineers (unit group 2334). This includes electronics engineers only. • Engineering managers (unit group 1332). This includes engineering managers only. • ICT support and test engineers (unit group 2632). This includes ICT quality assurance engineers, ICT
support engineers and ICT systems test engineers. It must be noted that for this occupation it can be hard to gauge how many of these occupations are engineering specific, so some caution should be taken with numbers for this occupation.
• Industrial, mechanical and production engineers (unit group 2335). This includes industrial engineers, mechanical engineers and production or plant engineers.
• Mining engineers (unit group 2336). This includes mining engineers and petroleum engineers.
Engineers Australia
• Other engineering professionals (unit group 2339). This includes aeronautical engineers, agricultural engineers, biomedical engineers, engineering technologists, environmental engineers, naval architects and engineering professionals not elsewhere classified.
• Telecommunications engineers (unit group 2633). This includes telecommunications engineers and telecommunications network engineers.
Some occupations, where the numbers are too small to provide meaningful analysis, may be excluded.
Engineers Australia
Australian Engineering Employment Vacancies 6
Australia Engineering vacancies in Australia in 2020 experienced a sharp decline associated with COVID-19 restrictions, but, as
with all jobs, and all professional level roles advertised, began to recover by mid-2020.
Figure 1 below displays trends in Australian vacancies from January 2006 to December 2020 for total Australian
vacancies across all levels and sectors, professional vacancies, and engineering vacancies. Figures have been indexed
to 100 from January 2006.
Whilst engineering vacancies mirrored the rest of the job market at the beginning of 2020, they fared slightly worse
as the impact of COVID-19 restrictions reverberated around the nation However, the gap is inflated due to
comparing total vacancies in Australia, as well as total professional vacancies to engineering vacancies. At their lowest
point in June 2020, engineering vacancies were down 27% from the beginning of the year but began a steady climb
upwards for the rest of the year. However, still some 6% less jobs were advertised in December 2020 than were
recorded 12 months prior in January.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION -6% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +8% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +24% (October-December 2020)
0.0
50.0
100.0
150.0
200.0
250.0
300.0
AUSTRALIAN TOTAL PROFESSIONALS ENGINEERS
Australian Engineering Employment Vacancies 7
Figure 2 shows Australian labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional vacancies, and
engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 2: Australian vacancies over the last 12 months (January 2020 - December 2020
AUSTRALIAN TOTAL PROFESSIONALS ENGINEERS
Vacancies by engineering occupation Most engineering vacancies in Australia were for civil engineering professionals, followed by mining engineers and
Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers, though demand varies depending on states. Further information on
state-based vacancies by engineering occupation can be found in state specific sections below.
Figure 9 shows engineering occupations by number of advertised vacancies from January 2020 to December 2020.
All figures have been indexed to 100 as at January 2020.
0
200
400
600
800
1000
1200
1400
1600
1800
2000
Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 9: Engineering vacancies in Australia by occupation January - December 2020
Civil Engineering Professionals Mining Engineers Industrial, Mechanical and Production Engineers ICT Support and Test Engineers Other Engineering Professionals Electrical Engineers Engineering Managers Telecommunications Engineering Professionals
Engineers Australia
New South Wales Engineering vacancies in NSW followed Australian trends, declining in the first half of 2020 and recovering steadily
from July onwards. By December 2020, engineering vacancies had almost recovered to pre-pandemic levels where
professional vacancies in NSW overall continued to decline throughout the year in contrast to professional vacancies
advertised across all Australian states and territories.
Figure 3 shows NSW labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional vacancies, and
engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION -3% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +29% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +8% (October-December 2020)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 3: Total vacancies, professional vacancies and engineering vacancies in NSW
(January 2020 - December 2020)
Engineers Australia
Victoria Engineering vacancies in Victoria paralleled national trends for 2020, declining to their lowest point after the
pandemic restrictions in June, and steadily climbing from July onwards. However, advertised vacancies remained
lower in December than at the beginning of 2020.
Figure 4 shows Victorian labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional vacancies, and
engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION -13% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +35% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +9% (October-December 2020)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 4: Total vacancies, professional vacancies and engineering vacancies in
Victoria (January 2020 - December 2020)
VIC TOTAL VIC PROFESSIONALS VIC ENGINEERS VIC
Engineers Australia
Queensland Engineering vacancies in Queensland mirrored Australian trends with the least jobs advertised in June and steady
growth throughout the remainder of the year. However, growth was slower overall than other major states, recording
lowest figures in May and continuing through June then slow but steady recovery speeding up in the last 3 months to
December 2020.
Figure 5 shows Queensland labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional vacancies,
and engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION -8% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +20% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +12% (October-December 2020)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 5: Total vacancies, professional vacancies and engineering vacancies in
Queensland (January 2020 - December 2020)
QLD TOTAL PROFESSIONALS ENGINEERS
South Australia Engineering vacancy figures in South Australian remained slightly more robust than other states with the onset of
COVID-19 in Australia and experienced an upward trend, with annual growth up 23% from January to December
2020. Like other states, the low point was midyear, slightly earlier in May, dropping by nearly 20% from January.
Figure 6 shows South Australian labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional
vacancies, and engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION +23% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +38% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +12% (October-December 2020)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 6: Total vacancies, professional vacancies and engineering vacancies in
South Australia (January 2020 - December 2020)
SA TOTAL PROFESSIONALS ENGINEERS
Western Australia As in South Australia, engineering vacancies remained reasonably steady when compared with other major states.
Similarly, at the lowest point in May 2020, recorded vacancies declined by 17%. However, from July onwards an
upward trend continued and advertised vacancies recorded higher numbers from October through to the end of
December 2020, up 15% from January the same year.
Figure 7 shows Western Australian labour market trends in online advertisements for all vacancies, professional
vacancies, and engineering vacancies over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
ANNUAL GROWTH RATE CALCULATION +15% (January-December 2020)
6 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +32% (July-December 2020)
3 MONTH GROWTH CALCULATION +11% (October-December 2020)
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 7: Total vacancies, professional vacancies and engineering vacancies in
Western Australia (January 2020 - December 2020)
WA TOTAL PROFESSIONALS ENGINEERS
Australian Engineering Employment Vacancies 14
Tasmania and the territories As the number of engineering vacancies recorded in Tasmania and the territories is low, trend analysis for these
jurisdictions has been combined for comparison.
Tasmania
Tasmanian engineering vacancies were reasonably stable, dropping by just over 10% at the lowest point in April, for a
swift recovery to exceed statistics recorded for January 2020 for the rest of the year. In trend terms, Tasmania’s
recorded engineering vacancies were up 54% in December 2020 from January the same year.
Northern Territory
The NT also remained steady, declining by less than 10% at the lowest points recorded in March and April, and
finishing the year about 16% up from January 2020.
Australian Capital Territory
The ACT did not fare so well, with recorded engineering vacancies declining steady from one month to the next
recording low points down 46% from January for the last four months of 2020.
Figure 8 shows labour market trends in online advertisements for engineering vacancies in Tasmania, NT and ACT
over the last 12 months. Figures have been indexed to 100 from January 2020.
0
20
40
60
80
100
120
140
160
180
Jan-20 Feb-20 Mar-20 Apr-20 May-20 Jun-20 Jul-20 Aug-20 Sep-20 Oct-20 Nov-20 Dec-20
Figure 8: Engineering vacancies in Tasmania, Northern Terrritory and Australian
Capital Territory (January 2020 - December 2020)
TAS NT ACT