One in two employers in Australia are struggling to fill key roles, especially skilled trades, engineering and sales, a survey has found.

Accounting and finance staff, IT staff, chefs, mechanics and technicians are also in demand, according to the survey by ManpowerGroup.

Although the Australian results are slightly down from last year when it was 54%, they are still well above the global average of 34% and above the Asia Pacific average of 45%. Australia is ranked fourth out of 41 countries for talent shortages.

According to Lincoln Crawley, managing director of ManpowerGroup Australia and New Zealand, the lack of skilled trades is an ongoing problem for Australian employers.
'We are in a resources boom that is going to last for decades and unless we boost apprentice completion rates there will be a severe shortfall of skilled trade workers. We should do everything possible to encourage people into skilled trades as a career, if we want to secure a strong and productive economy in the future,' he said.
Crawley pointed out that Australia needs to promote a more positive image for skilled trades and vocational education as a career path.
'Young people need to understand the high demand that exists, and the competitive salaries they can command once they're qualified,' he said.
He also revealed that high drop out rates for apprenticeships pose an ongoing challenge.
'Fair Work Australia is considering lifting wage rates for apprentices, and this is helpful as long as we get the balance right, and employers can still afford to hire and train apprentices,' said Crawley.

'Companies also need frontline managers to have the skills and resources to support apprentices properly, and make sure their first experience of the workplace is a positive one,' he added.
According to Peter Tatham, executive director of the Career Industry Council of Australia, more investment is needed to help guide individuals towards in-demand jobs.
'To address skills shortages over the next decade we need to ensure that the young people in school, university and vocational training have access to high-quality, well resourced career services to increase their awareness of opportunities and to develop the skills to access them,' he said.

'Unfortunately, we are heading in the opposite direction. In its most recent budget, the Federal Government abandoned its national career development strategy, cut the career information service, stopped funding national career development week and reduced publication of the job guide. People of all ages require better quality labour market information to make informed career decisions that may contribute to addressing skills shortages,' he added.