Bendigo's workforce squeeze: three market trends businesses can't ignore

Bendigo's unemployment rate fell to 4.1 per cent in June, the lowest in the Loddon Mallee region in five years, according to the latest Department of Employment data. That leaves roughly 1,200 people actively looking for work-and more than 2,600 job ads listed on Seek and Jora for positions across the city.

The numbers tell a simple story: employers are running harder to fill roles that didn't exist three years ago. And it's not just the big operators feeling the pinch. Small businesses along Mitchell Street and in the Golden Square shopping precinct report they're struggling to find qualified applicants for roles in aged care, hospitality and early childhood education-sectors where demand has surged since the pandemic-era migration shifts levelled off.

Three trends reshaping the local labour market

Trend one: the hybrid divide has widened. Bendigo's commute-time advantage-a 20-minute drive from Kangaroo Flat to Epsom-used to be a selling point. Now workers in IT, marketing and professional services expect remote or hybrid options even for roles based locally. A survey by the Bendigo Business Council in May found 68 per cent of member firms now offer some form of flexible work, up from 42 per cent in 2022. Businesses that don't offer it are losing candidates to rivals who do, even if the pay is similar.

Trend two: skills are shifting faster than training providers can keep up. The Bendigo TAFE campus on McCrae Street added a Certificate IV in Digital Marketing last year and filled all 32 places within a week. But employers at the Bendigo Manufacturing Hub on Bakers Lane say they need more workers trained in automation and robotics-not just for the big factories but for the 15-odd specialist precision-engineering shops that have set up in the city since 2020. The Victorian Government's $40 million Loddon Mallee Workforce Innovation Fund, announced in March, is supposed to help bridge that gap, but local training providers say the first round of grants won't flow until November.

Trend three: the cost-of-living squeeze is changing who stays and who leaves. Bendigo's median rent hit $480 a week in May, up 11 per cent year-on-year, according to SQM Research. That's pushing some younger workers-especially those in retail and hospitality-to consider cheaper regional centres like Maryborough or Swan Hill. Meanwhile, homeowners in Strathdale and Kennington are reporting they're less willing to relocate for a job offer if it means selling into a falling market (Bendigo house prices dropped 3.2 per cent over the June quarter). The net effect: employers are fishing from a smaller, more cautious pool of local candidates.

What businesses need to do now

Bendigo's economic development officer, the council's 'Workforce Bendigo' program, launched a free monthly jobs-and-training expo at the Bendigo Marketplace in July. The first event drew 140 job seekers and 22 employers, including the Bendigo Health network and the city's largest private employer, the credit union. Early feedback suggests the face-to-face model works better than online listings for filling roles in construction, disability support and retail.

The practical advice coming out of that expo: start building your pipeline now. If you're hiring for Christmas, you should be advertising before the end of September. If you're looking for apprentices, get your paperwork to the Bendigo Apprenticeship Centre on View Street at least 10 weeks before you want them to start. And if you're a small business owner without a clear retention strategy-defined as a written plan for training, flexible hours, or pay progression-expect to lose your best people to the larger firms that do.

The next Bendigo Business Council quarterly breakfast is on August 14 at the All Seasons Resort on McIvor Road. The agenda includes a presentation on the innovation fund's application process. For a city that's grown faster than its workforce can adapt, it might be the most important meeting of the year.