New report shows slight decline in December job postings
Job postings for human resources and recruitment roles went up slightly in December as SEEK's latest report shows signs of a "recovering labour market" in New Zealand.
SEEK NZ's new Employment Report revealed a 0.7% increase in HR and recruitment job postings for the month of December.
The increase comes despite the 0.3% decrease in job ad volumes in December, the first in six months.
"This first decline in ad volumes in over a year was only slight, but has halted the stable-to-positive trend we were enjoying throughout 2025. Despite the pause, some sectors are demonstrating positive longer-term momentum," said Rob Clark, country manager of Seek NZ.
"Overall, the long-term data points to a recovering labour market, with pockets of expanding opportunities– albeit at a measured pace, as we head into 2026."
Construction as biggest job ads gainer
According to the report, the construction industry logged the biggest monthly gains in job ad volumes of 3.4%, followed by the engineering industry at 2.6%.
Annually, the construction industry also posted the strongest growth in job ad volumes with 42.9%.
"Ongoing and new investment in major infrastructure projects continues to drive employment growth in the construction and affiliated industries, with most regions recording rising demand for workers in those roles," Clark said.
But not all industries are gaining momentum, according to the SEEK NZ data. The science and technology industry recorded a 3.9% monthly decline in job postings, followed by design and architecture (-3.0%).
"Not all sectors are growing, with softer activity in the professional and consumer services and public sectors stagnating monthly growth in Wellington and leading to a decline in Auckland," Clark said.
Applications down in November
Meanwhile, the same report found that applications per job ad declined by 0.1% in November.
This is the second month that applications dropped, according to SEEK NZ. But it noted that competition among jobseekers remains high.
The biggest growth in applications per job ad in November was recorded in the science and technology industry (4.6%). This is followed by design and architecture (4.3%) and then farming, animals and conservation (3.8%).
