new zealand, new zealand employers,

October 27, 2026

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New Zealand’s engineering job market is sending mixed signals. While advertisements for specialist engineering roles are rising sharply, overall job creation remains weak and graduates are struggling to secure placements. We examine the data behind this apparent contradiction and what it means for employers and jobseekers.

Two recent reports have presented seemingly contradictory pictures of New Zealand’s engineering employment market.

An RNZ Morning Report story warned that engineering job openings had fallen by approximately 72% over two years, leaving students and graduates struggling to secure essential work experience.

Just two weeks later, 1News reported that engineers dominated SEEK’s list of New Zealand’s fastest-growing job opportunities. Advertisements for geotechnical engineers had increased by 137.5%, while strong growth was also recorded for surveyors, mechanical engineers, site engineers and health and safety advisers.

So, is New Zealand experiencing an engineering jobs slump or an engineering recruitment boom?

The answer is: elements of both are happening simultaneously.

The reports are measuring different things

The first important distinction is that the reports use different data, timeframes and definitions.

The Engineering New Zealand analysis discussed by RNZ examined estimated job openings across the broader engineering sector. Its Infometrics data compared the current market with 2024, before the full impact of New Zealand’s infrastructure and construction downturn had been felt.

SEEK’s figures, reported by 1News, measured the percentage increase in advertisements for particular occupations between June–August 2025 and the corresponding period in 2026.

One report therefore measures how far the overall market has fallen from its earlier peak. The other identifies which occupations are recovering fastest from the weaker conditions experienced in 2025.

Engineering openings remain well below 2024

The Infometrics figures demonstrate the scale of the downturn:

• In 2024, New Zealand recorded an estimated 5,893 engineering job openings.
• In 2025, that number fell to 1,585.
• In 2026, it increased slightly to 1,640.

This means total engineering openings remain approximately 72% below their 2024 level. However, the increase from 1,585 to 1,640 also suggests that the market may have reached its lowest point and begun a very gradual recovery.

A simple example illustrates how the apparently conflicting headlines can both be correct. If vacancies fall from 100 to 20 and then increase to 40, the latest result represents 100% annual growth—but vacancies remain 60% below their original level.

That is broadly what appears to be happening in New Zealand’s engineering market.

Job advertisements do not necessarily represent new jobs

Another critical difference is the distinction between an advertised vacancy and a newly created position.

An advertisement might be replacing someone who has retired, resigned or moved overseas. It could also represent the same position advertised through multiple channels. An increase in job advertisements does not automatically mean the total engineering workforce is expanding.

The Infometrics figures divide engineering openings into two categories: new positions resulting from employment growth and replacement vacancies resulting from people leaving the workforce.

Estimated newly created engineering positions were:

• 3,903 in 2024
• –390 in 2025
• –322 in 2026

A negative result means the engineering workforce contracted rather than expanded.

By comparison, replacement openings remained relatively steady at approximately 1,960 positions annually. This indicates that many current vacancies may be replacing experienced people rather than expanding teams or creating entry-level opportunities.

Demand is concentrated in particular occupations

The SEEK figures nevertheless provide important evidence of renewed activity in selected areas.

Between June–August 2025 and the same period in 2026, advertisements reportedly increased by:

• 137.5% for geotechnical engineers
• 133.3% for electricians
• 123.8% for surveyors
• 111.8% for health and safety advisers
• 96.6% for mechanical engineers
• 75% for site engineers

These positions align closely with emerging transport, water, electricity and other major infrastructure requirements.

However, SEEK did not publish the underlying number of advertisements for each occupation. Large percentage increases can result when demand rises from a very low starting point.

The figures therefore demonstrate momentum in selected occupations, but they do not prove that the entire engineering employment market is experiencing strong growth.

Experienced engineers and graduates face different markets

The largest divide may be between the people employers currently need and the people trying to enter the profession.

Infrastructure projects require engineers who can immediately manage designs, sites, risk, compliance and delivery. As projects move closer to construction, employers commonly seek experienced geotechnical engineers, site engineers, project engineers, surveyors and HSE professionals.

Graduates require supervision, structured development and exposure to appropriate engineering work. Companies are less likely to invest in this training when their future workload remains uncertain.

Engineering students must also complete substantial practical work experience as part of their qualifications. When consultancies and contractors reduce graduate recruitment, students can struggle to obtain the placements necessary to begin their careers.

New Zealand could therefore have shortages of experienced specialists while simultaneously offering too few opportunities to graduates.

The consequences of the previous slowdown are still being felt

New Zealand’s engineering consulting sector experienced significant job losses during the infrastructure downturn.

Engineering New Zealand reported that firms lost approximately 1,350 people through redundancies over two years, while a further 596 moved overseas. It warned that losing engineers and restricting graduate opportunities would create a deeper workforce shortage when infrastructure and construction investment recovered.

The current improvement in advertisements does not immediately reverse those losses. It may instead reveal how quickly shortages reappear when projects restart and employers attempt to recruit from a workforce that has already contracted.

A two-speed engineering market

The evidence points towards a two-speed market rather than a straightforward jobs boom or slump.

Experienced professionals in specialist infrastructure disciplines may see increasing opportunities. At the same time, graduates, junior engineers and people outside the areas experiencing immediate project demand may continue to face a difficult employment market.

Competition also remains strong. SEEK reported that applications per advertisement increased by 2.9% in September, while New Zealand’s unemployment rate remained at 5.6%.

For employers, the danger is focusing exclusively on immediate project-delivery requirements. If businesses do not continue hiring and developing graduates, the industry may enter the next infrastructure cycle without enough intermediate-level engineers to support its senior workforce.

What happens next?

A genuine recovery will require more than isolated increases in advertisements. It will depend on infrastructure projects receiving funding, contracts being awarded and employers gaining sufficient confidence in their future workloads to expand permanent teams.

New Zealand still has substantial transport, water, energy, housing and resilience infrastructure requirements. The long-term demand for engineering capability has not disappeared.

The immediate challenge is bridging the gap between future infrastructure needs and present employment conditions.

The two reports are therefore not as contradictory as they first appear. Together, they describe an engineering market beginning to recover in particular specialist areas while remaining significantly smaller than it was two years ago.

The greatest risk is that New Zealand mistakes growth from a depressed base for a fully recovered market—and fails to protect the graduate and early-career pipeline it will need when infrastructure activity accelerates.

Sources

1. RNZ – “Engineering job slump threatens graduate work placements”
   5 October 2026
   Read the RNZ article
2. 1News – “Job growth: Engineers dominate, but which other roles make the top 10?”
   20 October 2026
   Read the 1News article
   This article reports SEEK’s occupation-level advertising increases, including geotechnical engineers, mechanical engineers, site engineers, surveyors and HSE advisers. (1news.co.nz)

Engineering employment and graduate data

3. Engineering New Zealand – “New jobs data concerning for future workforce”
   6 October 2026
   Read the Engineering New Zealand analysis
   Contains the Infometrics Sector Monitor figures for total openings, new jobs and replacement demand between 2024 and 2026. (engineeringnz.org)
4. Engineering New Zealand – “Engineering graduates increase, shortage remains”
   26 June 2026
   Read the Engineering New Zealand report summary
   Covers the 58% increase in engineering enrolments, 80% increase in graduates, workforce redundancies and engineers moving overseas. (Engineering NZ)
5. Engineering New Zealand – “Supporting engineering graduates”
   8 June 2026
   Read the Engineering New Zealand article
   Explains the 800-hour practical-work requirement and the difficulty students are experiencing in securing placements. (Engineering NZ)
6. Engineering New Zealand – “New Zealand facing long-term engineering skills shortage”
   2 April 2025
   Read the Engineering New Zealand article
   Provides longer-term evidence about graduate attrition, overseas-trained engineers and New Zealand’s structural engineering shortage. (Engineering NZ)
7. ACE New Zealand – “Engineering firms lose 1,200 people in 12 months amid major slowdown in infrastructure”
   8 April 2025
   Read the ACE New Zealand article
   Reports redundancies, overseas departures, reduced graduate recruitment and the delay between infrastructure announcements and work reaching consultancies. (acenz.org.nz)

Wider labour-market and infrastructure data

8. MBIE – Jobs Online
   Updated 14 October 2026
   View MBIE’s Jobs Online data
   Shows the wider recovery in online job advertisements following 11 consecutive quarters of annual decline. (mbie.govt.nz)
9. Stats NZ – Labour market statistics: June 2026 quarter
   5 August 2026
   View the Stats NZ labour-market release
   Records unemployment at 5.6%, with approximately 171,000 people unemployed. (Stats NZ)
10. MBIE – National Construction Pipeline Report 2025
    View the National Construction Pipeline Report
    Forecasts infrastructure activity increasing gradually to approximately NZ$19.6 billion in 2030. (Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment)
11. Engineering New Zealand – “Engineering worth up to $18 billion a year to the economy”
    Read the Engineering New Zealand economic analysis
    Provides background on the size, value and longer-term workforce requirements of New Zealand’s engineering profession. (Engineering NZ)

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