MedicalJobsAustralia.com’s Health Workforce Update brings you the latest health and medical job vacancy statistics and workforce trends in Australia.
AUSTRALIAN HEALTH SECTOR JOB VACANCY SUMMARY (MAY-24 DATA)
Stable month-on-month job ad volumes, but year-on-year declines continue: The latest Internet Vacancy Index (IVI) by Jobs and Skills Australia recorded only 0.01% (-5) fewer health and medical job advertisements in May 2024 compared to April 2024, signifying stable job volumes over the month. However, there were 11% ( -4342) fewer health and medical job ads compared to a year ago.
Month-on-month declines were mainly observed for Nursing and Midwifery occupations (except Nurse Educators and Researchers), with -286 fewer Registered Nurse positions advertised and slightly fewer job ads for Dental Assistants, Nursing Support and Personal Care Workers, and Enrolled and Mothercraft Nurses.
Compared to a year ago, there are fewer job ads across all occupation categories. Detailed information on IVI job ad volumes and ANZSCO occupation categories can be found in Table 1, 2 and 3 below.
Recruitment activity is subdued, even with high vacancy numbers compared to historical levels: Despite the year-on-year declines, health sector job advertisements and vacancies continue at strong levels. Current volumes remain above the 5-year May average (May 2020 – May 2024). In 2023, the average number of monthly health sector job ads had increased by 164.84% compared to 2018. The population, on the other hand, increased by only 7.23% (2023 vs 2018, see ABS Population Pyramid). While the unprecedented and record growth in job advertisements following the COVID-19 pandemic is ending, vacancy numbers remain at elevated levels.
Table 1. IVI Job Ad Volumes, May 2024: Month-on-month and year-on-year changes across occupation groups in Australia
Notes Table 1: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from the Internet Vacancy Index Report > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories – May 2024. *More information on our occupation categories can be in Table. 2 ‘ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide’ below.
Table 2. ANZSCO 4-Digit ‘Health Sector’ Occupation Guide
Notes Table 2: Created by MedicalJobsAustralia.com using the Internet Vacancy Index (IVI) and ANZSCO 4-digit occupations relevant to the Health and Medical workforce. This shows how occupations are grouped and totaled.
Table 3. Average # of Health Sector job ads per month per year vs. May-24
Notes Table 3: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from the Internet Vacancy Index Report > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories – May 2024. > average # job ads per month, by year, and job ads May-24.*Occupation Categories can be found in Table. 2 ‘ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide’ above.
Job Advertisements for Medical Practitioners were up by 3% over the month, but down by 20% compared to the same time last year. Nursing job ads were down by 3% over the month, but only 8% over the year. Job vacancies are falling from a phase of peak growth and continuing their downward trend. Figure 1. below shows job vacancy growth in the last 5 years (May 2019 – May 2024) for Medical Practitioners, and Nurses and Midwives.
Figure 1. Australian IVI Health Sector Job Ads in May 2019-2024 – 5-year Trend
Notes Figure 1: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from the Internet Vacancy Index Report/latest release > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories – May 2024. *More information on our occupation categories can be found in Table. 2 ‘ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide’ above.
Figure 2 below tracks job ad volumes over 2 years. Job vacancy volumes have been declining for most health and medical occupation groups since Oct 2023, and the annual growth rate in job ads has slowed since May 2023.
Figure 2. Australian IVI Job Ad Volumes over 2 years (May-22 to May-24)
Notes Figure 2: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from the Internet Vacancy Index > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories - May 2024.
- Health Professionals Total > includes all occupations from the following occupation groups: Medical Practitioners; Nurses and Midwives; Allied Health, Diagnostic and Therapy Professionals; and ‘Health and Welfare Services Managers.’
- WHOLE SECTOR TOTAL > combines the Health Professionals Total (above) plus the following occupation group: Health and Welfare Support Workers, Personal Carers, Technicians and Assistants.
More information on our occupation categories can be in Table. 2 ‘ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide’ above.
The current distribution of the health and medical workforce in Australia is shown in Figure 3 below, with Support Workers, Assistants and Technicians making up over 40% the workforce.
Figure 3. The current distribution of the health and medical workforce in Australia (Nov-23)
Notes Figure 3: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release > Data downloads: EQ08 - Employed persons by Occupation unit group of main job (ANZSCO), Sex, State and Territory, August 1986 onwards (Pivot Table) (Data reference period: November Qtr. 2023). *Occupation groups consist of multiple ANZSCO 4-digit occupations. These are listed in Table 2. ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide, above.
Current health and medical job vacancies make up 2.22% of the total employed in the industry. Medical Practitioners have the highest vacancy rates - currently 3.13% of the total medical practitioner workforce.
Figure 4. IVI job vacancies (April 2024) in Australia as % of the workforce
Notes Figure 4: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from Internet Vacancy Index > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories - May 2024.
*Occupation groups consist of multiple ANZSCO 4-digit occupations. These are listed above in Table 2. ANZSCO4 Occupation Guide. **Workforce estimate is calculated using https://www.abs.gov.au/statistics/labour/employment-and-unemployment/labour-force-australia-detailed/latest-release > Data downloads: EQ08 - Employed persons by Occupation unit group of main job (ANZSCO), Sex, State and Territory, August 1986 onwards (Pivot Table> Data reference period: November Qtr. 2023.
HEALTH AND MEDICAL JOBS-IN-DEMAND: May 2024
Health Sector Occupations with the highest number of vacancies in Australia (IVI May 2024 - ANZSCO4 Occupations), include:
- Registered Nurses – 8,708
- Aged and Disabled Carers – 4,406
- General Practitioners and Resident Medical Officers – 3,045
- Nursing Support and Personal Care Workers – 1,881
- Occupational Therapists – 1,826
- Social Workers – 1,523
- Physiotherapists - 1,392
- Welfare Support Workers – 1,363
- Occupational and Environmental Health Professionals – 1,215
- Audiologists and Speech Pathologists/Therapists - 1,149
Table 4. Occupations experiencing the highest annual growth (year-on-year increase) in job ads (IVI May 2024 vs April 2023, ANZSCO4 Occupations), by Occupation Category.
Notes Table 4: Generated by MedicaljobsAustralia.com using data from the Internet Vacancy Index Report > Data downloads: Internet Vacancies, ANZSCO4 Occupations, States and Territories – May 2024. *Please refer to Table 2 above for the complete list of ANZSCO Occupations covered in this report.
