Newly released data has shown that over the past six months, job openings in NSW have jumped by 25% more than in the rest of the country combined.
Since January, NSW has seen 85,600 new jobs being filled, while the remaining states and territories together have added just 68,900 in the same period, according to information from the Bureau of Statistics.
In July this year, NSW alone added 29,500 jobs – more than four times the next highest state.
According to The Sydney Morning Herald, the NSW unemployment rate of 6% is the lowest in Australia, and is the lowest that any state has been below the national average for two years.
The employment participation rate is also at a “historic high”,
The Herald reported.
Cherelle Murphy,
ANZ’s co-head of Australian economics, told
The Herald that NSW’s state economy was influential over employment.
“The ducks are all lining up for NSW,” she said. “I don't think that's going to all turn around quickly – this trend seems fairly well entrenched.”
Murphy added that the outlook for business investment – which is a major concern in some parts of Australia – was looking positive in NSW.
Research conducted by ANZ has shown that employment growth in NSW over the past five years has been driven by four powerhouse service industries: health, education, hospitality and professional services.
“About 75% of total jobs in NSW have come from those four sectors,” Murphy explained.
She said that there were several economic trends influencing the nation’s states, with certain regions – such as Western Australia and Queensland – being more heavily affected by the resources downturn.
“There are extremely different things going on across the country at the moment,” Murphy said.
Since January, the unemployment rate in Western Australia jumped from 5.5% to 6.3%.
In spite of NSW’s apparent superiority, the Bureau of Statistics’ data revealed that the average wage in NSW came in second, falling behind Western Australia.
Average weekly ordinary time earnings in NSW were $1512.10 per week, which was $29 higher than the national average.
According to
The Herald, Western Australia’s average wage was boosted by the state’s high proportion of workers in the mining sector.
The Bureau of Statistics said that the mining sector had the highest average wage at $132,000 per year.
This was followed by professional, scientific and technical services ($93,350), finance insurance services ($89,736), and information media and telecommunications ($86,913).
