Australia Announces 279 Occupations In Need Of Workers
- Jobs and Skills Australia released its 2026 Occupation Shortages List, identifying 279 roles across more than 1,000 occupations assessed nationwide
- The 279 shortage occupations represent 27% of all roles assessed, a figure that has fallen steadily from a peak of 36% in 2023
- Technicians and Trades Workers alongside Professionals made up 90% of the shortage occupations, spanning construction, electrotechnology, health and early childhood education
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Jobs and Skills Australia has released its 2026 Occupation Shortages List (OSL), naming 279 occupations where demand for workers currently exceeds supply, a figure that amounts to 27% of all roles assessed and continues a downward trend from the 29% recorded in 2025 and the peak of 36% reached in 2023.
The OSL is an annual assessment that examines over 1,000 occupations across the Australian labour market to determine which roles face genuine shortages.
Source: UGC
The methodology runs across three stages, beginning with statistical modelling, followed by manual checking, and concluding with stakeholder and government feedback, to produce results that reflect real conditions on the ground.
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Technicians and Trades Workers and Professionals together accounted for 90% of the shortage occupations.
The roles in shortage are concentrated in construction, engineering, electrotechnology and telecommunications trades, health, early childhood education, and various engineering and science fields.
Why the Shortages Are Happening
Beyond identifying which occupations are in shortage, Jobs and Skills Australia also published its Occupation Shortage Drivers (OSD) analysis to explain the causes behind the numbers. The framework identifies three key drivers.
An education and training gap arises when the pipeline of qualified workers coming through commencements, completions and available applicants is simply not large enough to meet labour market demand.
A suitability gap occurs when there are enough qualified applicants in number, but employers find that candidates lack the employability skills or work experience required for the role.
A retention gap reflects situations where employers struggle to hold onto workers, often because of low pay, poor working conditions or workers moving on to more senior positions, forcing businesses to recruit more frequently just to maintain staffing levels.
Suitability and Training Gaps Lead the Way in 2026
The 2026 OSD results show that the suitability gap and the education and training gap were the two most common main drivers of shortage across occupations, with retention issues ranking third.
According to Jobs and Skills Australia, this pattern suggests that shortage pressures in Australia are stemming primarily from limitations in both the capability and the overall capacity of the available labour supply.
Retention challenges, where they do appear, are concentrated among Technicians and Trades Workers in sectors such as food and hospitality, automotive, and construction.
The 2026 OSL Key Findings Report and the full OSD Report are both available through Jobs and Skills Australia for further detail on methodology, data sources and individual occupation results.
Austria lists requirements for visa
Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Austria's government published the official requirements foreigners must meet before they can apply for a visa to visit the country.
Applicants must hold valid travel health insurance covering at least €30,000 (N47,145,000) and valid across the entire Schengen area.
Source: Legit.ng
