Jobs in Australia: Industries expected to be most in demand in 2018

Human resources, data security and technology, aged care, social assistance and construction are expected to be among Australia’s most in-demand industries in 2018. These industries look promising after 2017 ended as a stellar year for the country’s employment growth.

National recruitment firm Hays recently shared its predictions about which industries will be in demand this year. It has been almost two weeks since the New Year started. Employees are returning to work from the holidays, and those looking to start a new career may consider industries investing a significant amount of money to improve their products and services.

Hays managing director for the ACT, Victoria and Tasmania Tim James said that data security and IT jobs will boom amid the rapid growth of technology. A number of industries currently spend a significant amount to improve efficiency.

Sectors like mining and professional services as well as finance and banking invest in new technologies and expertise is required in cybersecurity and innovation. "That is definitely a big area that we are seeing skill shortages in," The Australian reports James as saying.

The construction sector is tipped to add more jobs this year and beyond. According to James, huge public infrastructure projects will specifically boost the sector over the next eight to ten years. He cited the multi-billion dollar metro rail tunnel projects in Sydney and Melbourne.

The year 2018 looks good for aged care employees. Among jobs that will likely be in demand are personal care attendants, registered nurses, clerical jobs and facility managers.

The National Disability Insurance Scheme is rolling out across the country. It is expected to produce jobs to provide support to about 475,000 people with disability.

Health and social assistance were pinpointed by the latest federal Department of Employment industry projections as being the main area of job creation in the labour market since the 1990s. The trend is expected to continue.

Professional scientific and technical services, construction and health and social assistance will help boost jobs growth between 2017 and 2022, it has been predicted. On the other hand, manufacturing and agriculture are expected to generate fewer jobs.

The sectors with the most solid jobs growth in the previous years tend to have a higher proportion of women, according to Michael Workman, Senior Economist at the Commonwealth Bank. He added that the trend seen last year will likely continue in the year ahead, the Business Insider reports.