Hiring in a shortage: 29% of occupations, and the skills that change by 2030.

The short version

Jobs and Skills Australia's 2025 Occupation Shortage List, released in October 2025, found 293 of 1,022 assessed occupations in national shortage, or 29%. Professionals account for 122 of those and technicians and trades workers 99. Construction, education and training, mining, health care and other services carry the heaviest shares. Against that, the World Economic Forum's employer survey expects 39% of core skills to change by 2030, with 63% of employers calling skills gaps their biggest barrier and 77% planning to reskill.

The cost of the empty chair

A vacant $90,000 role costs roughly $1,730 a week in lost productivity, and an internal recruitment cycle in Australia runs around 63 days against about 42 through an agency (industry estimates, 2025). That is $15,500 or $10,350 before the person starts, and before the cost of a wrong hire, commonly put at around 30% of first year salary. Every week the shortage adds to time to hire, the maths gets worse.

Skills-based hiring is now the default

Eighty five percent of employers report practising skills-based hiring, and 53% have removed degree requirements, up from 30% a year earlier (TestGorilla employer survey, 2025). PwC's data shows the market moving the same way: the share of AI-augmented jobs requiring a degree fell from 66% to 59% over five years. The question has become "can this person adapt to how the work is changing", and a CV cannot answer it.

The move

Hire for adaptability and train for the tool. Redeploy before you recruit: half of employers plan to transition workers from declining to growing roles, and that is the cheapest hire you will make. And measure both the incoming candidate and the existing team on the same instrument, so the decision about who to reskill and who to hire rests on a number with a range, not a manager's hunch.

Common questions

How many occupations are in shortage in Australia?

293 of 1,022 assessed occupations, or 29%, in the Jobs and Skills Australia 2025 Occupation Shortage List (October 2025). Professionals account for 122 and trades 99.

What does a vacancy cost an Australian employer?

Roughly $1,730 a week in lost productivity on a $90,000 role, before the cost of a wrong hire, commonly put at about 30% of first year salary (industry estimates, 2025).

Should we reskill or hire?

Redeploy first. 77% of employers plan to reskill and 50% plan to transition workers into growing roles (WEF 2025). Measure candidates and the team on the same instrument to see the real gap.