Employers may need to consider turning to new incentives and added benefits to attract candidates, at a time when New Zealand's unemployment rate sits near a record low.
New Zealand's latest unemployment rate is 3.3 percent in the September 2022 quarter, according to Statistics New Zealand, and has remained constantly low all year.
SEEK's end-of-year review found record-level job advertisements and low applications per advertisement have resulted in an extremely tight labour market where candidates hold more bargaining power.
"Candidates have been in the driver's seat all year, employers have been pulling new levers to try to attract applications," Seek New Zealand's country manager Rob Clark said in a statement.
However, Trade Me Jobs spokesperson Patrick Cairns says the average number of job applications per listing increased by 38 per cent year-on-year in the quarter ending December 31. Looking around the country, Patrick says every region saw an increase in applications in Q4 when compared with the same period last year.
Breaking down salary data further shows it grew incrementally over the quarter.
In October the national average salary was $67,056, in November it reached $67,836, before finishing off the year in December at $68,001.
How to attract candidates
All indications are that sign-on bonuses became more commonly used with 349 percent more references to 'sign-on bonuses' in 2022 compared to the previous year. There was also an increase in job advertisements promoting flexible work options with the number of roles mentioning "work from home" in the job description increasing from approximately 160 mentions each month in 2019 to 12 times as many in 2022.
Employers need to be careful in how they regulate their Sign-On bonus and it is recommended that the following be included:
· How the bonus is to be paid - one lump sum in a separate check on the next regularly scheduled pay date after you start employment or over a period
· It must state that the signing bonus is taxable, and all regular payroll taxes will be withheld
· There should be a pay-back if the candidate leaves within a certain period eg.in the event that the candidate leaves within 12 months of the date of hire, they will be responsible for reimbursing the company for the entire signing-on bonus
· The candidate must authorize the Employer to withhold the sign-on bonus from any severance and other final pay they might receive should their employment terminate on or before a certain date.
I am always willing to assist with this process and has a short and sweet Sign-On Bonus Agreement included in any instruction on this topic.
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