Australian employment marketplace SEEK characterised the 2021 job market as a year of highs and lows; record-breaking job ad numbers, lowest ever applications per job, and lockdowns impacting the market. Kendra Banks, managing director of SEEK ANZ, said the platform saw more job ads than ever before. “Each state and territory recorded the highest number of ads within a month at one stage during the year, some multiple times, with multiple industries experiencing their own highest levels in SEEK history in 2021,” Banks said. While lockdowns across some states resulted in a fluctuation of job ad numbers over the past 12 months, the numbers trended upwards overall. October and November experienced record job ad numbers as New South Wales, and Victoria eased restrictions. Meanwhile, the number of applications per ad has conversely fallen due to increasing job ad numbers, a smaller talent pool, and higher awareness of job ad security …