How much does a Kiwi earn on average nowadays?
New data from Trade Me Jobs show New Zealand’s national average salary reached a record high, with employees now receiving more than $70,000 on average.
“While the cost of living in Aotearoa continues to rise, it is promising to see that salaries are increasing too,” said Matt Tolich (pictured above), sales director at Trade Me Jobs. “This shows that employers are working hard to make sure salaries are competitive in order to attract employees in this high cost of living environment.”
Tolich noted competitive salaries are seen across trades and services, retail and customer service, and hospital and tourism. The record average salaries are seen in the big cities, but the regions are also seeing new highs, such as in Otago ($68,326), Gisborne ($68,496), and in the Bay of Plenty ($69,448) to name a few.
“In a talent-short market, employers are using competitive pay as a means to attract quality workers to their industries and the regions,” Tolich said.
On the other hand, job listings in the second quarter of 2023 were down 15% compared to the first quarter. The greatest decrease in the rate of job listings was seen in the fields of architecture and IT when compared to last year’s data. According to Tolich, there are many factors to consider with these decreases in job listings, including hesitance from employers with the recession as well as the approaching general election.
“However, unlike a normal recession we have seen business confidence increase, we haven’t seen the unemployment rate rise and still have a talent-short market. All of these factors are making things interesting for both employers and job hunters,” Tolich said.
Job applications in the trades and industry were significantly up, which could be a sign of resurgence of industries. This was followed by another field hard-hit by the pandemic, hospitality and tourism.
Meanwhile, Tolich foresees a slowdown in the job market over the next six months with the election coming near.
“Once employers know how the cards will fall following October’s election, things should pick up again in the job market as employers and applicants have greater certainty. As we head into summer, we’d expect job listings to bounce back,” he said.
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