Health and aged care providers in Australia continue to face acute worker shortages, as indicated by the latest Omega Medical Jobs & Salary Index for Q1 2023. The Index reveals an 8.6% increase in national vacancies in the first quarter, indicating a reversal in the modest decline seen in the previous two quarters. The demand for medical staff is accelerating again this year, placing huge pressure on employers to meet the demands of doctors and allied health professionals in a job seeker’s market.
According to the Index, nursing roles saw the highest number of job postings, and demand for medical practitioners rose by 25%, with allied health professionals experiencing a 4.9% rise in demand. A substantial increase of 17.6% in the demand for aged care vacancies was also noted. The number of medical technician roles advertised increased by 10.8%, while the demand for General Practitioners rose by 84.3% over a two-year period*.
The largest increase was in locum vacancies, which rose by 10.4%. The permanent job market is also strong, rising by 7.8% in the first quarter. However, vacancies are hard to fill, with unrelenting strain and a lack of resources driving workers, particularly nurses, away from the sector.
Western Australia dominated the regional analysis with an increase of 16%, and the state is conducting an aggressive global recruitment campaign across a range of industries and occupations. New South Wales is also a buoyant market, with demand up by 9.9% across both the public and private health sectors. Victoria was the only state to experience a decline in demand of 2.6%.
John Codner, Managing Director of Omega Medical, explains that the Index highlights the need for healthcare employers to adapt to changing work environments, including remote work and locum positions, and that employers who are willing to offer flexible work arrangements are more likely to attract top talent. “Those offering the best salaries, conditions, and environment will be the winners in a ‘dog eat dog’ market,” he continues.
The Omega Medical Jobs & Salary Index for Q1 2023 indicates that the medical sector is not feeling the effects of inflation, economic slowdown, or unstable geopolitical factors that have impacted other industry sectors in Australia. However, the sector’s acute shortages continue to rise, and there are no quick fixes to the systemic shortages that have been building for years.
*Data is supplied to Omega Medical Pty Ltd by Hro2 Research Pty Ltd under license. Data is collected from up to 6,700 employers, recruiters, and niche job board sites 24/7. Repeat advertisements on one site or across several sites are deduplicated. All data in this report is Seasonally Adjusted. In this report Quarter One refers to the three months ending February 2023.
