1300 363 128
For immediate release. Geelong 19 February 2019
Historically speaking, Geelong’s enterprises have had it good. For the most part, employment choices have favoured employers; the region’s supply of labour has been more abundant than demand, so employers have been able to select their staff from a range of individuals, employees have accepted less than desirable salaries, employment terms have been rigid and the region’s employers have invested less in the staff than their capital city counterparts.
And then came Geelong’s transformation. Dated back to TAC’s arrival over 10 years’ ago, Geelong’s employment landscape began to change. Now the pace of transformation is so rapid, our region’s organisations are struggling to keep up.
With the entry of some key employers combined with Deakin’s meteoric growth, today many employers are left out in the cold. It is now a candidate’s market. Now, candidates can pick and choose who they work for. They are looking at what the employer can offer them. Questions that employers need to be across more than ever are “How flexible are you?” “What other benefits are there?” As for the discount in salary, the region’s key employers have made a permanent change to our wages landscape where small and medium employers need to compete with the big end of town if they want the best.
Harvest Talent Recruitment and People Solutions Director, a Geelong local, has seen this shift in the landscape. Maree Herath comments that “Geelong employers have been blindsided. When one major employer entered the region, the impact was minimal. Now with multiple, similar companies seeking similar skills the war for talent is real!”
It is why Harvest has embarked on its first ever HR Index survey. This survey will span the complete business landscape and cover employment trends, casualization of the workforce, talent attraction, leadership capability and other HR challenges that are keeping employers awake at night.
Even Council is putting priority here with Head of Economic Development, Tim Ellis commenting that the City is addressing workforce planning.
The survey closes on 3 March 2019 with the results presented at a host of regional forums from late March onwards.
“There’s never been a better time for employers to gain a clearer picture of our current employment trends, the challenges and potential opportunities faced by the region’s employers and the key HR focus for companies today.” Herath says
To have your say, the survey can be accessed on line at http://tinyurl.com/y399cvs5 or a Harvest team member can conduct the survey directly with employers on 1300 363 128 for those who wish to participate in the survey.
