Seek survey reveals the one thing most likely to get Aussies a pay rise during the nation’s cost of living crisis

Australians who want a pay rise are much more likely to get one if they change jobs rather than lobby their boss.

Employment website Seek found that those who found a new employer had a 9 percent pay increase, compared to a 5.5 percent pay increase for those who stayed with the same company, based on a survey of 1,200 people in 2023.

Seek senior economist Matt Cowgill said with unemployment at a two-year high of 4.1 per cent, bosses did not have to fight to retain staff as they did last year.

“With unemployment rising and fewer jobs being advertised than a year ago, employers don’t have to compete as hard for talent to fill vacant positions,” he said.

Australian wages have finally exceeded inflation, ending almost three years of workers facing real pay cuts.

But the wage price index growth of 4.2 percent was only 0.1 percentage point above the inflation rate of 4.1 percent for 2023.

However, in the year leading up to January, salaries advertised on Seek increased by 4.5 percent, showing why changing jobs is a better way to cope with the cost of living.

Some sectors saw even bigger pay rises, with community services jobs increasing by 8.9 per cent, following a 15 per cent pay rise for aged care workers.

Separate data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows those in the health and social care sector were paid an average salary of $97,500 last year.

This was slightly below the average full-time salary of $98,218, with this broad category including physicians and nurses in residential care.

Teaching and training jobs advertised on Seek saw a 6.2 per cent increase after the NSW Government increased graduate teacher salaries to $95,490.

Then there are positions that do not require experience in hospitality and tourism jobs, which are advertised on Seek, with an annual increase of 4.5 percent.

A Seek survey of job openings in 2022 and 2023 found that 52 percent of them did not specify screening questions about having experience in a similar role.

Employment website Seek found that those who found a new employer were 1.6 times more likely to get a pay increase, based on a survey of 1,200 people in 2023 (pictured is a Sydney waitress)

The Reserve Bank’s thirteen rate hikes in eighteen months have taken the cash rate to a twelve-year high of 4.35 percent.

The Ministry of Finance expects unemployment to reach 4.5 percent by mid-2025 due to the slowdown in the economy.

That would cause 65,486 people to lose their jobs in a labor market of 14.8 million people.