ACTOR, TRUCK DRIVER TOP JOB SEARCHES DURING HEIGHT OF PANDEMIC

ACTOR, truck driver and cleaner were the most-searched for jobs in 2020, as the total traffic on
Australian jobs boards increased by 12 per cent.

Research by SEMrush reveals the roles jobseekers were looking for most on job advertisement
websites – either to make ends meet when they lost positions or had hours reduced because of
COVID-19, or to undertake a long-term career pivot.

While the number of searches for actor and truck driver has increased by about 10 per cent year on year, the number of people searching for cleaner jobs actually decreased by 20 per cent in 2020 –but it was still in the top three. This is despite cleaners being more important than ever to the community because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Career Confident director Helen Green says it is surprising to see actor was searched for the most across multiple platforms, but this could in part be because an increased number of young people were looking for work in 2020, “particularly given the impact of COVID-19 on the hospitality and retail sectors”, she says.

“It is also important to remember that many people use job search platforms as a research tool to explore their interests, see what a particular job entails and ascertain market demand. In my experience, interest in acting, performing arts, film and related careers is, and continues to be, strong.

Some people will actively pursue a professional career in acting, while others might see an acting role as a gateway to another career or means of gaining media exposure or influence.”

Securing casual work as a film or TV commercial extra may also appeal as a casual job, especially for students”

Helen Green, Director of Career Confident

Meanwhile, the SEMrush data shows the keywords nurse and registered nurse rounded out the top five searches – up 24 per cent and 69 per cent respectively.

Hairdresser and data analyst both had 250 per cent more searches than in 2019, while searches for plumber roles increased 150 per cent. The number of people searching for librarian and nanny positions decreased by almost 10 per cent.