Skills survey shows who’s hot and who’s not.

Managers, professionals, technicians and clerical and admin workers are in over supply in Australia while corporate services managers and engineers are in short supply.

That’s the finding from the latest Clarius Skills Index, which claims to be the only measure of supply and demand of skilled labour in Australia.

The research of four key occupation groups over the December quarter revealed a total oversupply of 160,500 skill sets. Technicians were in the largest oversupply at 58,000 followed by Clerical and Administrative workers – 51,800 – and then Professionals with an oversupply of 32,300.

The Index revealed extreme skill shortages for corporate services managers and engineering professionals as well as “high” shortages of ICT professionals and advertising and sales managers

Executive general manager of the Clarius Group Paul Barbaro urges employers not to axe staff as a knee jerk reaction to more challenging economic conditions.

He advised companies to retain a good skills mix and to consider flexible work options over the next year. For job candidates he advises researching the skills in demand and upskilling.

The Clarius Skills Index draws on data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics and the Department of Education Employment and Workplace Relations, which is then analysed by KPMG for the Clarius Group.

Research focuses on 20 skilled occupation categories within four occupation groups as defined by the new Australian and the New Zealand Standard Classification of Occupations (ANZSCO). Roles range from the lower to the upper end of the salary scale.

The professional category, including accountants, financial advisers and marketing employees, has experienced the biggest turnaround. This category moved from a shortage of 2,200 in the June quarter 2011 to an oversupply of 2,900 in the September quarter and a blow-out in the December quarter to 32,300 professionals.

The oversupply of clerical and administrative workers, which covers office and practice managers, PA’s and secretaries, accounting and financial clerks, also increased significantly in the December quarter to 51,800 from 24,600 in the September quarter.

The technicians category, including building, engineering, ICT and telecommunications staff, moved marginally from an oversupply of 57,500 to 58,000 in a potential skilled workforce of 1,768,900, while Managers rose by 2,400 in the quarter to 18,400.

“For companies seeking senior engineers or computing professionals there are few quick fixes. There is a lot of time required for up-skilling in these occupation categories so seeking these skills offshore, requiring 457 visas, may be the only viable option,” he said.

“The relaxation of requirements in obtaining an on-hire labour agreement, where on-hire companies are allowed to recruit overseas talent to hire out to clients, will help alleviate some of these immediate pressures”

CareerOne.com.au, February 2012.