By Byron Kaye

SYDNEY, (Reuters) – As the skills gap grows and closed borders increase their severity, Australian lawyers are in high demand. Firms offer sign-on bonuses and nearly double the fees for recruiting.

People in the hiring process stated that firms are reviewing their salaries at least twice per year. They have increased base pay up to 15% to try and avoid losing employees amid record-high industry demand.

Belinda Fisher, a recruiter for the legal industry, said that she received sign-on bonuses in almost every deal and that more would be required to meet those requirements. She has increased her fee from 18% – 30% for a place lawyer.

The measures reflect a sense of desperation among Australian employers as a sharp increase in demand for some services – from M&A law to data analytics to hospitality – runs headlong into a workforce thinned out by two years of closed borders.

For example, the demand for highly skilled tech workers has increased as a result of pandemic-related movements restrictions that prompted people around the globe to go online and conduct business. Australia is the only country where there has been a shortage of skilled technology workers.

According to SEEK jobs site, 54% of pre-pandemic job ads have been posted, however, the actual number of applications for those positions is about the same. This could be because Australia’s economy has restructured itself to deal with blockages in supply chains and the need to automate many aspects trade.

Robert Half, a recruiter at NYSE, says that people in the fields of data management, business Intelligence, and talent acquisition are essential for changing conditions can see salary increases up to 20% due to increased demand.

Andrew Brushfield is the Robert Half’s Australia director. “We are finding ourselves discussing with our clients how to retain staff because in many cases, replacement costs are more expensive,” he said. Employees will leave if employers do not take proper care of their yards.

He said that the best way to retain and attract staff is through increasing their pay. However, flexibility when working from home was an important factor.

Wild Tech is a Sydney-based provider of cloud-based software for business. Grant Wild, the managing director, said that the company’s first sign-on bonus was A$10,000 due to the “tight labor conditions” they are experiencing. After 25 years of experience in technology, I have never seen sign-on bonuses used like this.

BRAIN DRAIN’

Australia’s borders were opened to all vaccinated residents this month. However, recruitment experts warn that it is possible for Australia to increase the difficulty in finding staff and maintaining them. This will be because workers are free from the COVID-19 lockdowns which have been the longest and most restrictive around the globe.

A spokesperson for the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said that 2 million of Australia’s 25,000,000 population have waited to apply for or renew a passport. But, this is changing every two weeks.

Jason Johnson, who is a white-collar recruiter said that there will be a “brain drain” to the major global markets as people of older age try to absorb the demand.

Johnson said that in the last few months, one fifth of executives on Johnson’s books stated they were open to moving abroad and would not mind staying at home.

Britain’s hospitality industry is the best destination for Australians to travel abroad. They are currently facing a labour shortage due to Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union. Nick Hare of UK Pub Co said that many are now offering accommodation, flights and European tours to Australians who want to relocate.

He stated, “The panic for exit is certain to be there.”