Significant decline in available jobs according to the Careers24 Job Market Insights report.

Careers24 latest recruitment trends 2019

Significant decline in available jobs according to the Careers24 Job Market Insights report.

Careers24 monitors their own listings as well as those generally available online to draw insights into the state of the job market. The findings mirror the 11 year high unemployment rate of 29.1% recently announced by StatsSA. According to Careers24’s latest insights report, for the period July to September, there has been an 18% contraction in the number of jobs advertised online compared with the same period in 2018. The biggest losses were seen in North West with a 59% drop in available jobs online, followed by Limpopo and Mpumalanga with a 48% reduction and Free State and Northern Cape with a 46% and 40% decline respectively. 

The Western Cape saw a relatively small 4% drop in available listings, while Gauteng saw a 15% reduction of jobs offered. Gauteng and Western Cape represent just over 80% of all listings advertised online, growing from 76% for the previous period. “It is clear that jobs available outside of urban areas is diminishing, especially in engineering, mining and social and civil services” says Marc Privett, General Manager of Careers24.

Jobs in education saw the largest rise in number of jobs available growing by 22%, closely followed by the 21% rise in consultancy based jobs. Management vacancies also saw a 9% rise year on year. “The rise in consultancy-based opportunities can be attributed to the fact that many companies are looking for shorter-term, project based solutions for their resource needs. This is echoed in the changing nature of work where the concept of a long-term career in one organisation is being up-ended by the needs of Millennials and Generation Z’s who crave flexibility over stability.” Says Marc Privett. 

The biggest reduction in percentage of vacancies posted were seen in human resources as well as health jobs with a 50% decline in job listings each, followed by jobs in logistics and distribution with a 41% decline and engineering jobs seeing a 38% decline. IT and telecoms has now overtaken finance as the leading category of jobs. This is consistent with the growing needs for specialist IT, programming and data analysis skills, coupled with the impact of retrenchments, and to a lesser degree automation, seen in the banking and finance sectors over the last 12 months.

The impact of the fourth industrial revolution is starting to show in some sectors where the move towards automation is evident. Jobs in customer service have dropped by 34%, a clear indication that companies are looking for automated tools like chatbots, mobile and online services to service their customers. The streamlining of HR functions with technology has impacted the structure and make-up of Human Resources teams.

The findings of the Careers24 Job Market Insights echoes the rising unemployment rates in South Africa, and in particular the availability of opportunities for first time job seekers and the youth at large. While there continues to be a need for highly specialised skills, there are a lack of opportunities for entry level job seekers, particularly outside of Gauteng and the Western Cape. According to StatsSA, the unemployment rate amongst youth is a staggering 58.2%. 

Careers24.com is part of Simplify.hr, a consultancy that uses industry related insights to enable companies to unlock human potential and eliminate risk through effective recruitment practices and technology designed specifically for the South African market. We firmly believe that successful recruitment is the cornerstone of building stronger, more effective and ultimately more profitable organisations. For more information how Simplify.hr can help your company attract the best candidates and effectively manage your recruitment processes, please contact us on +27 (11) 713-9115, email us at info@simplify.hr or visit our website at www.simplify.hr . Simplify.hr is a proud member of the Media24 and Naspers family.