Federal government IT contracting hits the doldrums: Intermedium

The total value of federal government IT labour hire contracts crashed in the three months to December, according to new figures from public sector research firm Intermedium.

Intermedium’s quarterly Labour Hire Report showed that the government’s spend on IT contracting was $70 million, down 38%.

There were a total of 678 contracts during the quarter, compared to 1,053 a year earlier.

Intermedium’s research also showed that the two biggest players in the federal government IT contracting market, Paxus and Peoplebank, lost market share during the December quarter.

Paxus had 45 contracts worth $5.8 million during the quarter, down 39% year-on-year in dollar terms.

Peoplebank had 55 contracts worth $4 million, down 62%.

The third largest supplier to the government, Compass, saw its market share increase by 106% during the quarter, to 33 contracts worth $3.6 million.

SMS Consulting had 28 contracts worth $3.5 million, up 60%.

Clicks IT was down 14% to 28 contracts valued at $3.1 million, while Talent International saw an increase of 14%, to 22 contracts worth $2.7 million.

Icon Recruitment, Greythorn and Clarius all saw their federal government market share fall 44%. Icon had 30 contracts worth $2.7 million, Greythorn had 22 contracts worth $2.3 million, and Clarius had 21 contracts, also valued at a total of $2.3 million.

Finite was down 21% to 15 contracts worth $1.8 million.

The fall in the December quarter followed a relatively strong September quarter, which saw the strong seasonal rise that is typical of government contracting at the start of the fiscal year.

Although the September quarter saw a 6% fall in the number of contracts to 1,790, the overall value of $287.7 million was up 3%.


This article appeared in Shortlist News, an email service providing the latest news and analysis on recruitment and human capital management

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, recruitment.

Tagged with , , .

No comments

By admin – March 3, 2010

Temporary Skilled Overseas Workers are High Paid Professionals

The Federal Government has released statistics which show that almost 90% of temporary skilled migrants who were granted Subclass 457 visas in 2009-10 to date are managers and professional workers. The figures also show that the average total salary package for all new temporary skilled migrant workers is almost $100,000, an increase of $10,000 on the same time last year. The highest paid workers on Subclass 457 visas were in the mining industry with an average total remuneration of $169,000, followed by the financial and insurance services sector at $127,600. At the end of January 2010 there were 71,290 Subclass 457 primary visa holders in Australia, which is 13% lower than at the end of January 2009. A quarter of all primary visa applications granted have been to citizens of the United Kingdom, with 15% to citizens of India and 8% to US citizens. Registered nurses, doctors and computing professionals are the top occupations for primary visa grants.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, Market Trends, recruitment.

No comments

By admin – February 27, 2010

Skilled Trade Shortages Increase

The latest Housing Industry Association-Austral Bricks Trades Report shows there was a deterioration in the availability of skilled tradespeople in the residential sector in the December 2009 quarter. There was a shortage of labour in ten out of the thirteen skilled trades in December quarter, compared with eight trades in the previous quarter. The largest declines were in the Roofing (-0.36), Landscaping (-0.17) and Plumbing (-0.14) categories. As a result, the headline HIA-Austral Bricks Trade Availability Index fell slightly from -0.07 to -0.08 in the December quarter, meaning tradespeople were defined as being in moderate under supply.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, Market Trends.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – February 26, 2010

Future Purchasing of Employment Services Discussion Paper

The Industry Reference Group on Employment Services Purchasing was established by the Federal Government in 2009 to provide advice on stakeholder views and arrangements for purchasing employment services to help job seekers find work, and to help employers find workers. The Reference Group has now released a Future Purchasing of Employment Services Discussion Paper to seek the views of the employment services industry and other stakeholders on the arrangements for the mid-term performance review and business reallocation for Job Services Australia. The discussion paper also seeks initial views about how the Government should purchase employment services when current Job Services Australia service provider contracts finish in June 2012. The discussion paper will be the basis for public consultation sessions in each capital city this month.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management.

No comments

By admin – February 26, 2010

General Skilled Migration Program Points Test Review

The Federal Government has released a discussion paper to seek public comment on a review of the points test used to assess General Skilled Migration applicants. Under the current points test, potential skilled migration applicants who are not sponsored by an employer need to accumulate up to 120 points based on their qualifications, skills and proficiency in English in order to be eligible for a visa. However, the application of the current points test has not always led to outcomes that are consistent with the objectives of selecting skilled migrants with high value skills to meet Australia’s economic needs. The discussion paper was developed on the basis of initial discussions with key Commonwealth, State and Territory Government, industry and union stakeholders, and is now being provided for broader public comment. The Department of Immigration and Citizenship will report to Government on the outcomes of the review in May 2010.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – February 25, 2010

Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act Report

KPMG has been engaged by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) to conduct a review of the effectiveness and efficiency of the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act 1999, as well as the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency in delivering equal employment opportunity to women in the workplace. The report on the consultation phase of the review is now available, and shows that over 130 submissions were received from businesses, unions, employers, employees, women’s groups and other interested parties. Hundreds of reporting organisations and employees were surveyed and roundtables have been held at five locations across the country. The Federal Government is now considering the submissions and will release its response in coming months.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management.

Tagged with , , .

No comments

By admin – February 25, 2010

Time Running Out On Apprenticeship Kickstart Bonus

Employers who are considering employing new apprentices are reminded that there is only a week left to take advantage of the Federal Government’s Apprentice Kickstart Bonus. The Federal Government will provide $3,350 to employers who take on a young person aged 19 and under into trades hardest hit by skills shortages, as identified on the National Skills Needs List. The bonus is paid to employers in two stages with the first instalment of $850 paid at the three month point and the balance of $2,500 paid in the ninth month of the apprenticeship. Employers who are considering taking on an apprentice in trades such as butchery, bakery, bricklaying, carpentry, electrical, hairdressing and pastry cooking are eligible to access this $3,350 bonus, but the apprentice must commence employment before 28 February 2010.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management.

No comments

By admin – February 24, 2010

Skilled Vacancies Mixed

The latest Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations (DEEWR) Vacancy Report shows that the Skilled Vacancy Index (SVI) increased by 1.6% in trend terms to 44.4 in February 2010. Over the month to February, rises were recorded in advertised vacancies for 12 of the 18 skilled occupations. The largest rises were for Marketing and Advertising Professionals (+9.9%), Metal Trades (+9.6%), and Electrical and Electronics Trades and Construction Trades (both +6.6%). The largest decreases were recorded for Health Professionals (-8.1%), Accountants and Auditors (-5.3%), and Food Trades (-3.4%). The Internet Vacancy Index (IVI) decreased by 3.5% to 67.4 in January 2010, with the fall largely attributed to seasonal factors (the IVI is not seasonally adjusted). Vacancies decreased for all of the eight occupational groups with the largest decreases for Machinery Operators and Drivers (-6.6%), Labourers (-6.5%), and Community and Personal Service Workers (-5.9%). In the ACT, the IVI fell by 3.2% in January to 4,979 vacancies in total.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, Market Trends, recruitment.

No comments

By admin – February 24, 2010

Australians Likely to Take More Holidays in 2010

A recent survey by stayz.com.au, a website catering to holiday rental accommodation needs, has found that of the 1,200 respondents, 96.8% said they are planning on taking a holiday this year. The tough economic times saw many families change their holiday plans with 12.8% of respondents indicating that they didn’t take any time off in 2009 to travel. However, despite the interest in holiday planning, the survey indicates that people are still looking at taking holidays that won’t break the budget. The trend towards domestic holidays is still strong with 78.1% of respondents stating that they would be holidaying locally, while only 50.3% had planned to head overseas.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, Job Seekers, Market Trends, recruitment.

No comments

By admin – February 24, 2010

Fresh Ideas for Work and Family Grants

From 25 February 2010 small businesses with less than 15 employees can apply for grants of up to $15,000 from the Federal Government to put in place family-friendly working arrangements. The Federal Government will support new, innovative ideas through the second round of the Fresh Ideas for Work and Family grants program. Information workshops on the program will be held in all capital cities from 15-26 February. More information is available in the Fresh Ideas case studies. Applications for round two of the Fresh Ideas for Work and Family grants program close on 31 March 2010.

For more information click here

This post was drawn from the Canberra Business Council’s Business Bullets newsletter.  To become a member of the Canberra Business Council, please visit the CBC website here: http://www.canberrabusinesscouncil.com.au

Bookmark and Share

Posted in Employers, Human Resource Management, recruitment.

Tagged with .

No comments

By admin – February 23, 2010