Talent squeeze for Australian Tech Employees

The COVID-19 pandemic has created unprecedented demand for tech talent in Australia.

According to data from Aon Insights, several forces are creating a talent squeeze — a flourishing local start-up scene, the growth in digital transformation projects in many organisations, and the growing local footprint of international companies.

Already the talent squeeze is seeing many organisations paying top dollar for new tech hires, according to Aon’s Radford Global Compensation Database.

Pay is on average 8 per cent higher for people hired in the past 18 months compared to the overall rate, with some particularly hot roles in the market pushing this premium up as high as 15-20 per cent.

The in-demand roles include engineers as well as product owners, data science, cyber security and technical support. 

Aon data show that a mid‑career employee in an existing job earning 5 per cent below market, when moving to a new organisation at the current median rate for new hires, can find themselves with a $20,000‑$30,000 jump in salary.

When they move, however, the empty position must then be filled, while the organisation will need to pay the ‘new hire premium’ to attract talent, and the cycle of attrition and recruitment continues to ripple across the industry.

With a million tech jobs expected by 2025, the situation could get a lot worse before it gets better.

-CyberBeat