Hunter Valley employment and labour market insights

by Craig McGregor | Aug 15, 2022 | Business, Featured, Recruitment

The team at Hunter Recruitment Group are very proud to be Hunter Valley Recruitment specialists – based in Maitland, NSW for over 15 years, we have seen the region change and employment trends shift.

Of course, there’s nothing like a global pandemic to shake up employment trends, labour markets and recruitment needs even further.

So today we thought we’d share with you the most recent Labour Market Insights for the Hunter, released June 2022 by the National Skills Commission, Australian Government.

For the purpose of reporting, the Hunter Valley is defined by the highlighted area below, and excludes Newcastle.

Across the Hunter there are currently 129,800 people employed.

Of the employed population 73% were in full-time work and 27% were classified as part-time workers.

Interestingly, when looking at the workforce age groups across the Hunter, the 65 and over age bracket has the highest level of participation – sitting at 26.8% – meaning succession planning across Hunter Valley businesses and Hunter-based industries will be coming to the fore very soon.

Of those employed in the Hunter Valley, the following are the largest employing occupations.

Looking further at occupation groups, the chart below details the distribution of workers across occupation groups in the Hunter Valley, including a comparison with the rest of NSW.

And finally, the unemployment rate for the Hunter is currently sitting at 3.9%, slightly above Australia’s unemployment rate of 3.5% – cited as the nation’s lowest in almost 50 years. Whilst the Hunter Valley’s youth unemployment rate is 9.9%.

If you’re looking for a career change, or moving to the Hunter Valley and searching for a job, register with HRG – we’ll let you know as soon as a suitable opportunity opens up.

And for any Hunter Valley-based employers, if you’re searching for staff or looking to improve your recruitment and retention outcomes, give us a call on 4936 6537– we can help.

Statistic Source: https://labourmarketinsights.gov.au/regions/all-regions-abs-sa4/HunterValley

How to boost your recruitment success with video interviews

by Craig McGregor | Jul 18, 2022 | Business, Featured, Recruitment

We’ve spoken before about the many recruitment benefits of video interviewing and the positive impact that technology can have on your search for staff.

Today we take a closer look at how to conduct a video interview to have the best chance of boosting your recruitment success.

Set the structure

As with any job interview, face-to-face or conducted via video, your questions count! Take the time to evaluate the role and identify what you really need to ask your applicants.

With a video interview, you will see and hear from candidates which gives you great insight but remember that consistency is key.

You want to be able to compare the answers of your candidates, their skill set, and fit for the role adequately, so ensure that they are given the same opportunities throughout the recruitment process.

Clear communication

For some applicants, video interviewing may be a new experience. They may be feeling a little anxious or self-conscious.

To help applicants feel at ease clearly communicate what they can expect, settle their nerves by clarifying any questions they may have ahead of time and provide them with as much information as possible.

Video interviews rely on technology and to avoid glitches or hiccups ensure that all candidates receive the correct links, log-ins and credentials for the video interviewing software or system you are using.

Provide feedback

Statistics show time and time again that candidates are hungry for feedback on how they perform in interviews – particularly if they have been unsuccessful in securing a role.

This is still the case for video interviewees.

Taking the time to provide genuine, considered and constructive feedback is not only positive for your company’s reputation it can improve your future recruitment pipeline and generally makes the process better and more effective for all involved.

Organise onboarding

Despite video interviews being conducted online it is important to remember that your new recruit is indeed human – even if they will be working remotely or in a hybrid capacity it is important to have a great on-boarding process.

Ensure that you can share your company culture with your newest employee and that they feel part of the team and well equipped in their role moving forward.

This should be the case no matter if you have used a traditional face-to-face or video interview technique and something which HRG is very passionate about.

A great on-boarding can alleviate HR issues into the future and assist greatly with staff retention.

If you’d like to discuss your recruitment needs, how to introduce video interviewing for your next hire or how to streamline your on-boarding and payroll processes contact Hunter Recruitment Group on (02) 4936 6537.

Looking for more details on video interviewing, its recruitment benefits and the positive impact it can have when looking for staff? Check out our blogs here:

More than a resume – recruit today via video

Technology & Recruitment: Video Interviewing & Remote Work

The recruitment benefits of video interviewing

Tips for video interview success