Growth spurt challenges Southland’s labour market

Southland’s labour force is not keeping up with the region’s growth, says the Department of Labour.

Figures released by the Department reveal that job vacancies in the region have increased by 33 percent in a year, the highest growth in the country. These show vacancies across many rural and urban professions and sectors. The figures are based on the Department’s monthly sample of job advertisements from 25 regional newspapers and two IT websites.

The Department’s Labour Market Knowledge Manager for Southland, Paul Crack, says business confidence is high in Southland, unemployment is the lowest it’s been in a generation, and the participation rate is one of the highest of any region in the country. Southland’s economy is booming, with increased demand for workers spread across every sector of the region's economy, at every level from professional to elementary.

Paul says the Department and local agencies are working together to find innovative ways to help employers meet the labour challenge.

“Relying on finding more people is not the whole answer. It’s also about workplace productivity, getting our businesses to work in newer and smarter ways. At the end of the day, increased productivity enables firms to produce products for less cost, or produce better products without cost increases.”

It’s about using resources – people and capital – in a smarter way to increase the value produced per worker, he says. He says improving productivity, alongside strategies to attract, develop and retain workers, will need a sustained effort by many people.

The Department of Labour is supporting Venture Southland, the Southern Institute of Technology and the Economic Development Association of New Zealand in a major regional workforce study of Southland, due for completion in March next year.