NATIONAL: The stagnant hiring practices plaguing the textile, clothing and footwear (TCF) industry appear to be lifting as recruiters report a rise in the number of jobs on their books.
Figures released earlier this month by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed that national unemployment dropped in September for the first time in five months, from 5.8 per cent to 5.7 per cent. But whether a slight increase in employment activity will have any long-term impact on the TCF sector remains an area of contention.
Melbourne-based industry recruitment firm Permanser has reported an increase in demand for both temporary and full-time workers, particularly within the textile and clothing manufacturing sectors, which have been flat for some years.
Permanser director Kate Porter said there was a marked difference between employment conditions in September compared to March this year.
“We’ve probably had double the number of jobs, to be perfectly honest,” she said. “We’ve seen a big uplift.” Porter said larger companies have been laying off workers but the small to medium ones have been hiring.
“I think maybe some of the bigger [contracts] that were originally with the larger companies have gone to some of the smaller companies who have been more flexible and quicker to adapt to [economic conditions].”
Principal consultant for the retail division of McKenzie Consulting Australia, Laurie Smith, said a similar change had occurred for its four consultants servicing the fashion retail sector.
“Per consultant, it’s gone from two, three, four jobs to over 10 during the last six months,” he said.
Demand is particularly strong for fashion buying and merchandise planning. “It’s a big, big increase – it’s almost like the floodgates have just opened up.”
Recruiters noted that high-skilled, management and essential service positions were faring better than less-skilled roles. Director of TCF recruitment service Threadhunters, John Morison, said a large portion of his business had come from finding replacement workers for senior positions.
“We’re not getting the more junior roles now; we’re getting the middle to upper level salary ranges, from the $60,000 to the $80,000 range,” he said.
Despite a 30 per cent increase in positions listed with the company this month, however, Morison was cautious about the long-term picture.
“It comes in fits and starts. They weren’t new positions: they were replacement roles that were essential service roles. I’d love to feel confident but this year has been an enormous challenge. I don’t think we can read too much into the general employment market across all sectors – we need to be realistic in our own sector. We get hit first – that’s just part and parcel of the volatility of the clothing industry.”
Smith was also pragmatic about the year ahead for TCF employment.
“My view is that the worst is over. I’m not saying it’s really, really buoyant but there’s been a vast improvement and it’s not stopping. Every day the phones are ringing and we’re getting companies calling jobs into us.”
All three recruitment firms also believed highly skilled workers were now in a position to negotiate better employment conditions, at a time when other industries are still considered to be operating as an employer’s market.
Morison said this was particularly evident in the flexibility of hours worked.
“The more qualified and essential staff members in that middle tier of management ... are in a better position to negotiate hours that are more suitable to their lifestyle. I’m currently looking for a very strong quality assurance manager, for instance, and they’re very few and far between. I’ve encouraged the client to look at 9.30am to 4pm.”
Morison said he did not expect a larger quantity of new roles to become available until January or February 2010, and his sentiment was mirrored in figures obtained from job website MyCareer.com.au. The number of positions advertised on the site in September 2009 for fashion manufacturing was 51.
This was lower than the number of jobs listed in the same sector in March 2009 (63) and September 2008 (87).
Managing director of rival job website Seek.com.au, Joe Powell, said he maintained “a cautious view” of the employment market’s recovery.
Erin O’Loughlin.