Skills Priority List Findings - ANZSCO Sub-Major Group 36

Occupations in Shortage

Across all Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations assessed for the 2021 Skills Priority List (SPL), 38% were found to be in shortage compared with 19% across all occupations. Of the two Minor Groups, Horticultural Trades Workers had a higher proportion of occupations in shortage than Animal Attendants and Trainers, and Shearers (Table 1).

Table 1: Occupations in shortage, Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers Sub-Major Group and Minor Groups

Future Demand

The majority (69%) of Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations are projected to have strong future demand, compared with a third of all occupations assessed (Table 2). No Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations are projected to have soft future demand.

Table 2: Future demand, Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers Sub-Major Group and Minor Groups

Among the Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations, three were found to be in shortage with strong future demand:

• Shearer
• Arborist
• Landscape Gardener.

Results by State and Territory

Of the states and territories, New South Wales had the highest proportion of Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations assessed in shortage (69%) compared with the national average of 38%. It should be noted that the variation across the states and territories, at least in part, reflects differences in the stakeholder input received.

Predicted Fill Rates

Incorporating many labour market indicators, the predicted fill rate has been formulated by the NSC to predict the percentage of vacancies filled by employers for a particular occupation over the 12 month research period.

The predicted fill rate for Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations is primarily in the 60%-69% range with over three quarters of all occupations in this group in this range. All Animal Attendant and Trainer, and Shearer occupations had fill rates in the 60%-69% range. In comparison, the predicted fill rates for Horticultural Trades Worker occupations are more widely dispersed, ranging from 40% to 79%.

Survey of Employers

The Survey of Employers who have Recently Advertised (SERA) is a key component of the SPL analysis. Between July 2020 and April 2021, the NSC contacted employers who had advertised vacancies across three Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations, Arborist, Landscape Gardener, and Greenkeeper, to ask about their recent recruitment experience.

Employers of these occupations generally filled a smaller proportion of vacancies compared with the average for all surveyed occupations (Figure 1), and they received fewer applicants, including suitable applicants, per vacancy. The recruitment experience of employers varied between occupations, with around three quarters of advertised Greenkeeper vacancies filled, compared with just over a third of Arborist vacancies.

Figure 1: Proportion of vacancies filled (%), average number of applicants and suitable applicants per vacancy (no.), Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers and all surveyed occupations, Australia, July 2020 to April 2021

Employers of Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations considered around 1.6 applicants per vacancy to be suitable. Over a quarter of employers received no suitable applicants, and 45% of employers had unfilled vacancies. The most common reason applicants were found unsuitable was due to a lack of general experience in the occupation (mentioned by nearly two thirds of employers), followed by a lack of required qualification or registration (mentioned by half of employers). Four fifths of Arborist, Greenkeeper and Landscape Gardener employers required applicants to have a formal qualification, most commonly a certificate III.

Employers in regional areas filled fewer Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker vacancies (42%), compared with their metropolitan counterparts (54%).

Data from the SERA show that employers in Tasmania and the Northern Territory filled the greatest proportion of Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers vacancies (67%) (Figure 2), while employers in Victoria filled the fewest (37%) and received only 1.1 suitable applicants per vacancy on average.

Figure 2: Proportion of vacancies filled (%), average number of applicants and suitable applicants per vacancy (no.), surveyed Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers by State and Territory, July 2020 - April 2021

Stakeholder engagement was limited for Skilled Animal and Horticultural Worker occupations. Through the engagement process, representative bodies were able to provide input on occupations through surveys, meetings with the NSC, or other submissions. Where received, stakeholders stated that recruitment difficulty was experienced for both entry level and experienced roles, and this recruitment difficulty was expected to continue over the next 12 months. In house training was mentioned as a way to deal with recruitment difficulty. Lack of a locally trained workforce was mentioned as a future challenge in these occupations.

The demand for Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers is strong. Advertised vacancy numbers for these workers have more than doubled since early 2020, rising to an historical high in May 2021.¹ Employment of these workers has risen over the past five years, although employment in May 2021 was below the peak recorded in 2018.²

New supply to this labour market has also strengthened in recent years. Training and entry pathways for Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers are varied, but the main source of new supply is through vocational training, with almost half of these workers holding a certificate III or higher VET qualification.³ VET training completions in courses related to Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers increased by around 25% over the five years to 2020.⁴

Temporary skilled migration is also a source of supply for a range of Technicians and Trades Worker occupations, including Skilled Animal and Horticultural Workers. The number of temporary skilled visa holders in the Technicians and Trades Workers major group has fallen since early 2020, down by around a quarter, limiting supply to this labour market.⁵

Notes

[1] National Skills Commission, Internet Vacancy Index, June 2021, trend

[2] ABS, Labour Force, May 2021, National Skills Commission trend

[3] ABS, Census of Population and Housing, 2016

[4] NCVER, Total VET Students and Courses, TVA Program Completions 2015-2020

[5] Department of Home Affairs, Temporary resident (skilled) visa holders in Australia, June 2021 (subclasses 457 and 482).