Defence Industry Insights 10: Our Top Five Takeaways

Since 2016, Kinexus has been publishing our Defence Industry Insights to help people and employers understand the defence industry workforce landscape. Now that our Tenth Edition of the document has been published, let’s look at the top five takeaways from this edition.

1. Strong Salary Growth

In the 18 months since our last Industry Insights document, we have seen an average salary increase of 3.5% - the largest increase since 2018. However, at a state level, salary growth has been uneven. In the Southern and Western states, there has been strong salary growth, particularly in South Australia with a 6% growth rate. Whereas, the Eastern states have languished.

2. Decrease in Industry Career Confidence

Since our ninth edition in 2022, there has been a 15% decline in the percentage of respondents expressing high confidence—from 55% 18 months ago to the current 40%. Additionally, there has been an increase in the proportion of individuals reporting no confidence at all, rising from 4% in 2022 to 9%.

3. Increased Interest in Contracting

Although we are seeing a government-wide push to reduce the number of contractors used, we are still seeing a steady trend in the interest in contracting. We are seeing a reduction in PMO roles within the contracting space, whereas highly skilled technical roles remain in high demand. This is unlikely to change within the next 12 to 18 months.

Of those surveyed, the top three reasons for people preferring contract work are:

Flexibility/work-life balance,
Pay, and
Type of work.

4. Top Motivators for Work

In the last two years, the top three motivators for work have stayed the same, however, there has been a downward trend on the importance of ‘remuneration since 2022 – from 66% to 61%.

5. Attraction and Retention Considerations

65% of those surveyed do receive additional benefits beyond annual salary and statutory superannuation, this has remained steady (between 60% - 65%) since 2019.