Surprising rise for Australian employment

Confidence appears to be returning to the business landscape as 2015 draws to a close, with the latest employment figures showing more people are in jobs.

October data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) reveals that trend employment increased by 260,500 people over the past 12 months. Meanwhile, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was down 0.3 per cent to reach 5.9 per cent.

The ABS noted that the trend was driven by a rise in male full-time employment, as well as an increase in the number of women taking on part-time roles.

Planning a recruitment drive is often a time when companies take a closer look at other areas of their operations. With new staff comes new risk, which is why you should seek professional advice about the insurance protections you need in your business.

Are hiring intentions improving?

The Hudson Australia Hiring Expectations Report for the third quarter of the year pointed to a slight dip in hiring sentiment. Between the second and third quarters of the year, the number of businesses planning to increase their permanent staff base fell from 17.1 per cent to 15.1 per cent.

However, this doesn't seem to have been the case, as the ABS data suggests some of the strongest employment figures of recent years.

Hudson found that Queensland employers are the keenest to take on new workers, as 19.5 per cent of respondents said they'd be recruiting more staff. This was closely followed by New South Wales, where 18.3 per cent of hiring managers said the same.

Some sectors were also shown to have greater demand for new recruits than others. Sales, marketing and communications businesses were found to be most likely to increase their headcount during the third quarter of the year.

To make sure your company is fully protected, find out about range of insurance covers that are available, such as accident and illness, to safeguard your business operations.