The following bullet points are bookmarks leading to titles of sections further down on the page.
The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) monitors skills in demand. DEEWR assesses skills in demand through a number of means, one of which is to survey employers who have recently advertised vacancies for selected skilled occupations. From these surveys, DEEWR produces Skills in Demand lists. Click on the following link to view the current Skills in Demand List.
DEEWR publishes reports for individual occupations as well as summaries of skills in demand for each State and Territory. Reports currently available are mainly for trades labour markets, although there are also a small number of professions and associate professions. Reports for professions and other occupations are expected to be published in late 2007. Click on the following link to view the current Skills in Demand Occupational Reports.
The Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL) lists those occupations and specialisations identified by DEEWR that are in short supply. A General Skilled Migration visa application for a nominated occupation that is on the MODL will receive priority processing. Click on the following link to see the occupations currently listed on the Migration Occupations in Demand List (MODL).
From 1 July 2007, the National Skills Needs List became the guide for determining the eligibility of employers and their Australian Apprentices for a range of Australian Government incentives. Previously MODL was used for this purpose. The new list of trade occupations is based on research conducted by the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR). Click on the following link to see the occupations currently listed on the National Skills Needs List.
DEEWR undertakes skill shortage research on a six monthly basis through its National Office and State Offices, especially for Trades and Professional occupations. The findings of the research are built around the Survey of Employers Who Have Recently Advertised (SERA), a telephone-based survey, but may also include analysis of industry demand, employment or vacancy trends, migration and training commencements and completions.
The findings are incorporated into the National and State Skills in Demand lists. Skill shortage information is available for each State and for capital city/other areas for each State.
Research into Information and Communication Technology (ICT) skill shortages involves both an employer survey and a survey of ICT recruitment agencies, and covers around 60 ICT skills. For more information, please refer to the SkillsInfo ICT web page.
Regional skill shortages -
A long standing data gap has been information on skill shortages for regions. With the stronger Australian labour market, skill shortages have become more pronounced and have broadened to less-skilled occupations. Data limitations affect the reliability of labour market data at the regional level, adding to the difficulty in identifying emerging regional skill needs.
DEEWR has undertaken several Regional Skills Shortage Surveys, some in conjunction with the Department of Innovation, Industry and Regional Development. Some of the findings have been made available as part of Better Connections Workshops or Survey of Employers Recruitment Experiences - Regional reports.
Region and Industry Survey Instrument -
The ABS has developed a 'common survey instrument' to collect information on labour and skill shortages. The instrument contains a set of core or universal questions to be asked in skills shortage surveys and a survey methodology. Click on this link for further information on the Common Survey Instrument.
Return to top of page