The number of Australian job vacancies was 57% higher in May 2021 than at the start of the pandemic in February 2020, according to seasonally adjusted data released Thursday by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

Compared to February of this year, job vacancies were up by 23.4% in May.

“There were around 362,000 job vacancies in May 2021, which was higher than we have ever seen in Australia,” said Bjorn Jarvis, head of labour statistics at the ABS. “This was 69,000 more than February 2021 and 132,000 more than last February.”

The ABS found that 22% of businesses reported at least one vacancy in May, double February’s level of 11%.

“There has been a steady increase in the proportion of businesses reporting at least one vacancy, after it fell to 7% in May 2020, early in the pandemic,” Jarvis said. “By August it was already higher than the start of the pandemic (12%), rising to 15% in November, 18% in February and 22% in May 2021.”

Growth in job vacancies was concentrated in the private sector, which accounted for 96% of vacancies.

“Businesses across all industries have reported difficulties in filling vacancies,” Jarvis said.