Key Points

  • Resume search trends across Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States are consistent with recognised skill and talent shortages. 
  • Healthcare, sales, skilled trades and hospitality are common pain points across countries, accounting for a significant share of resume searches in Australia, the UK and the US. 
  • Cross-border searches by employers on Indeed don’t generally reflect immigration patterns. Some employers or recruiters may be using cross-border resume searches to attract expatriates, with a high number of inbound searches in Australia, Canada and the US coming from countries with a significant immigrant population. 

The global job boom that took place throughout the pandemic recovery is gradually unwinding. Competition for talent has fallen significantly, with job postings down 31% in Australia, 36% in Canada, 38% in the UK and 28% in the US  from their peak. Nevertheless, skill shortages remain common and competition for talent is still above pre-pandemic levels in most markets that Indeed operates in.

Bar graph titled “Global job postings growth”. With a x-axis ranging from -25 to 150%, we compare job postings growth on Indeed across a variety of countries. Job posting growth in Australia ranks ahead of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.
Bar graph titled “Global job postings growth.” With an x-axis ranging from -25 to 150%, we compare job postings growth on Indeed across a variety of countries. Job posting growth in Australia ranks ahead of the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom.

Posting an open job on Indeed is one way employers signal demand, but not the only way. In addition, employers can also actively search Indeed’s database of millions of resumes worldwide to identify specific candidates based on more detailed criteria — such as ‘pediatric nurse with 15 years experience’ — that they can then invite to apply or otherwise reach out to. While there is some overlap with Indeed’s existing job posting index — similar sectors feature prominently in both — resume search provides unique insight into recruitment urgency and can identify pain points experienced by recruiters by leveraging a highly granular set of data. Resume search is a proactive step that suggests that other (more passive) strategies, such as simply posting a job advertisement online, haven’t been so successful.

Focusing on four large English-speaking countries — Australia, Canada, the UK and the US — we examined resume search trends throughout 2023. There were millions of different search terms and we grouped similar search terms together, such as ‘registered nurse’ and ‘registered nurse emergency’, to create a list of the most popular resume searches conducted by employers and recruiters. 

The most popular resume searches point towards common pain points across countries, particularly in areas such as healthcare, skilled trades, sales and hospitality. These countries are all different, each facing unique challenges, yet these commonalities link them together. An ageing population, for example, has placed tremendous pressure on healthcare systems globally, creating widespread and persistent skill shortages for doctors and nurses and aged care workers. 

Most popular resume search terms in 2023

There are a range of resume search terms that are consistent across these four countries but also a number of differences. Healthcare is a common throughline, yet in Australia, the focus is across a wide range of healthcare occupations, whereas in the UK it is all about nurses. Among skilled trades, ‘mechanic’ features prominently across all four countries, but in Canada, employers are searching for a broader range of skilled trades. 

So, let’s examine each country in turn:

Australia

In Australia, the most popular term searched for by employers or recruiters was childcare, with 3.0% of resume searches looking for childcare or early childhood education experience. Sales accounted for a further 2.4% of resume searches, with mechanic (1.9%) ranking third.

The most common industry, however, is clearly healthcare with physiotherapist (1.9% of searches), general practitioner (1.8%), registered nurse (1.7%), nurse (1.3%) and psychologist (1.3%) all featuring in the top ten resume search terms. The healthcare industry has been Australia’s fastest growing since the pandemic began but, also, the industry with the highest number of job vacancies. Talent shortages are considered critical across many healthcare occupations and that’s reflected in the search behaviour of employers and recruiters. 

The hospitality industry was represented via the 1.7% of resume searches for chef and cook. That industry has also faced critical shortages in recent years, with some restaurants understaffed and operating below capacity. 

Canada

In Canada, the most popular resume search term last year was sales with 3.6% of resume searches, ahead of millwright (2.6%) and mechanic (2.5%).

Healthcare was less prominent among Canadian resume searches, with nurse (0.7%) and registered nurse (0.4%) the only two healthcare-related searches ranking highly.

Searches for skilled trades, however, were far more prominent in Canada than in the other countries assessed. In addition to the aforementioned millwright and electrician, there was also strong interest in electricians (2.3%) and plumbers (0.8%). Apprenticeships for skilled trades in Canada are at a decade-plus low, so it is little surprise that employers and recruiters have become more proactive in trying to attract talent. 

Chef and cook also made another appearance, this time accounting for 1.2% of Canadian resume searches. 

Table titled “Top resume search terms in selected countries.” In 2023, employers in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States frequently searched for healthcare-related expertise, as well as for sales, hospitality and skilled trades. 
Table titled “Top resume search terms in selected countries.” In 2023, employers in Australia, Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States frequently searched for healthcare-related expertise, as well as for sales, hospitality and skilled trades. 

United Kingdom

In the UK, the term ‘nurse’ accounted for a whopping 6.9% of resume searches, with registered nurses falling just outside the top ten with a 0.6% search share. Faced with high turnover and low staff morale, employers are desperately trying to attract nurses and alleviate widespread and persistent skill shortages. 

Chef and cook once again features prominently, this time accounting for 3.6% of resume searches, just behind sales on 3.8%. 

Care work, particularly for the elderly or for people with a disability, feature prominently, with support worker (2.4%) and care assistant (1.6%) ranking highly. This is consistent with the UK’s ageing population, which has created tremendous pressure on the country’s aged care and support services. 

And once again, there is keen interest in skilled tradespeople, with a large number of resume searches for mechanic (1.3%) and electrician (0.9%). 

United States

In the US, the term registered nurse accounted for 4.1% of resume searches, while nurse rounded out the top three on 2.9%. Splitting the pair was sales on 3.3% of searches. Healthcare roles, in general, were prominent, with physical therapist (0.6%) featuring in the top ten search terms and medical assistant (0.4%), dentist (0.4%) and dental assistant (0.4%) falling just outside. 

Yet again, there was keen interest in skilled tradespeople. Around 2.1% of resume searches were for mechanic and a further 1.4% of searches for electrician.  

Customer service (1.1), retail (0.5%) and chef and cook (0.8%) featured prominently, as they did in the other countries examined. 

Where are resume searches coming from and where are they going?

On the Indeed platform, employers and recruiters can search resumes, not just in their home country, but also across the globe. The search for talent can be truly global, but as we discovered, the search itself rarely strays far from home.

Interestingly, search trends don’t tend to reflect immigration flows. First, outbound talent searches tend to be heavily concentrated in just a few countries. And second, inbound searches tend to come from locations you wouldn’t necessarily expect. Both trends may partly be driven by overseas recruiters trying to entice expats to return home.

Australia

In Australia, around one-third of resume searches come from overseas. Inbound searches were driven by Sri Lanka, which accounted for 7.7% of all inbound searches on Australian resumes, ahead of the Philippines (7.1%), India (5.8%) and the US (3.9%).

By comparison, when Australian-based businesses or recruiters show interest in overseas jobseekers they tend to focus primarily on the US (10.6% of outbound searches), Canada (4.2%) and the UK (1.3%). Outbound searches are somewhat at odds with Australia’s immigration intake, which has been dominated recently by India, China and the Philippines.

Table titled “Australian resume searches.” In Australia, employers across Sri Lanka, the Philippines and India commonly search through Australian-based resumes. Australian employers, by comparison, are primarily interested in US and Canadian jobseekers.
Table titled “Australian resume searches.” In Australia, employers across Sri Lanka, the Philippines and India commonly search through Australian-based resumes. Australian employers, by comparison, are primarily interested in US and Canadian jobseekers.

Canada

In Canada, around a fifth of resume searches come from overseas. Inbound searches are dominated by India (9.3%) and the US (6.5%), with minor interest coming from the Philippines (0.7%) and Australia (0.4%). 

By comparison, Canadian employers or recruiters are only interested in resumes from two countries: Canada and the US. Jobseekers in the United States accounted for 9% of resume searches by Canadian employers or recruiters, with every other country accounting for 0.4% of searches combined. 

Table titled “Canadian resume searches.” In Canada, employers across India and the US commonly search through Canadian-based resumes. Canadian employers, by comparison, are keen on US jobseekers.
Table titled “Canadian resume searches.” In Canada, employers across India and the US commonly search through Canadian-based resumes. Canadian employers, by comparison, are keen on US jobseekers.

United Kingdom

The UK is perhaps surprisingly isolated, with relatively low global interest in UK-based resumes and few domestic searches of overseas resumes. While our analysis doesn’t cover the period before ‘Brexit’, the share of inbound and outbound searches for the UK hasn’t changed meaningfully since 2019 — in stark contrast to jobseeker interest in UK opportunities. 

Almost 96% of searches on UK jobseeker resumes were from within the UK, significantly higher than in Australia, Canada or the US. The UK receives modest interest from employers in India (0.8% of inbound searches), the US (0.6%) and Ireland (0.4%). 

When UK businesses and recruiters search for overseas talent they tend to focus primarily on the US. The US accounts for 7.2% of all resume searches coming from the UK, with minimal interest apparent in the EuroZone. 

Table titled “UK resume searches.” In the UK, jobseekers receive relatively little interest from overseas employers. UK employers, by comparison, show keen interest in US jobseekers.
Table titled “UK resume searches.” In the UK, jobseekers receive relatively little interest from overseas employers. UK employers, by comparison, show keen interest in US jobseekers.

United States

In the US, almost one in five resume searches come from overseas. That’s dominated by India (13.2%), well ahead of the Philippines and the UK. It is perhaps surprising that the US received relatively few resume searches from Canada. 

US employers tend to be quite insular, showing minimal interest in jobseekers outside the US. Almost 99% of resume searches by US recruiters were directed towards domestic resumes, well in excess of Australia, Canada and the UK. 

Table titled “US resume searches.” In the US, employers across India commonly search through US-based resumes. US employers, by comparison, are primarily inward-looking, showing only minor interest in non-US jobseekers.
Table titled “US resume searches.” In the US, employers across India commonly search through US-based resumes. US employers, by comparison, are primarily inward-looking, showing only minor interest in non-US jobseekers.

Conclusion

Competition for talent might have eased over the past year but it still remains high by historical standards. Many employers continue to find recruitment difficult and there are common pain points across the four countries that we analysed, particularly in areas such as healthcare, skilled trades, sales and hospitality. Some recruiters have taken a more proactive approach to hiring by directly searching for the roles and skills they need. 

Interestingly, outbound resume search patterns aren’t typically consistent with immigration. Instead, those trawling through the resumes of overseas workers are perhaps trying to entice expatriates to return home. In Australia, for example, outbound searches are directed toward talent in the US, Canada and the UK whereas the nation’s immigration is concentrated in India, China and the Philippines. 

Search intensity and top search terms could potentially be used to identify pain points for recruiters and employers in real time, and we will be using this database further in the future. 

Methodology

We used Indeed’s resume search database to conduct this analysis. Since there are thousands of variations of some terms, such as ‘registered nurse’ and ‘registered nurse emergency’, we grouped similar terms together. To ensure quality control, we applied a filter that limited the length of search terms to remove searches that included a variety of related and unrelated terms within a single search. The analysis of resume search included searches from 2023. 

Data on the location of the resume search came from IP data from the employer or recruiter conducting the search. And the location of the resume itself comes from where it was uploaded.