POWER OF THE PEOPLE
TALENT ATTRACTION BECOMES A CRITICAL FEATURE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT
Michael Campbell , Director , Lucid Economics and Juan Pablo Alcantar , Board Member , International Economic Development Council ; and Senior Policy Advisor , Tuxpan Economic Development Council
The job market in Australia has never been this tight . If you have talked to any of your local businesses recently , they will tell you that getting ( and keeping ) staff is the biggest challenge . Experienced recruitment specialists have said that they have never experienced a labour market this tight in the last twenty years . Employers are competing fiercely for labour , offering incentives to new employees and investing heavily into
their workplace to attract talent . The new Mineral Resources HQ in Osborne Park , Western Australia more closely resembles a luxury hotel than an office building .
What should the economic development response be to this current environment ?
Consider this :
• The unemployment rate in June 2022 was 3.5 %, the lowest since 1974
• Job advertisements in June 2022 were over 303,000 , the fourth highest level since data capture began
Talent attraction will become an important facet to any comprehensive economic development program . Fortunately , there are experiences overseas that can shed some light on the issue and provide some tips to get ahead of the curve .
Figure 1 . Job Advertisements and Unemployment Rate , Australia
THE NORTH AMERICAN EXPERIENCE Research in North America has uncovered several interesting and important trends .
Quality of life matters … a lot .
The primary trigger for a worker to relocate was ‘ to have a better quality of life ’, far ahead of ‘ accepted a new job that required relocation ’. More interesting is that the percentage of workers citing quality of life as the key trigger for relocation increased from 2021 ( 38 %) to 46 %.
Key Takeaway : Workers are prioritising quality of life and lifestyle when considering where to live .
Source : National Skills Commission ( 2022 ); ABS ( 2022 )
VOL 15 NO 2 2022 12 www . edaustralia . com . au