By: Glenn Arnold
As Director of Safety People Australia, I spend my days speaking with safety, risk, injury management and health professionals across the country, from frontline roles to senior leadership. One pattern keeps popping up on resumes post-COVID: shorter tenures, more role changes, and what some hiring managers still label as “job hopping”.
Let’s call it what it really is: workforce survival.
The Market Was Anything But Normal
Since 2020, Australia has experienced one of the most turbulent employment markets in modern history. Border closures, labour shortages, business closures, restructures, acquisitions, cost-cutting, rapid growth cycles and sudden shutdowns turned entire industries upside down almost overnight.
Yet too often, candidates are judged on movement without context. A resume with multiple roles in four years does not automatically signal instability, lack of commitment or poor performance. In many cases, it reflects adaptability, resilience and strong demand for their skills.
We need to look beyond the job titles and dates and start asking better questions:
- What was happening inside the business at the time?
- Was the organisation acquired or restructured?
- Did funding disappear or leadership change?
- Was the role made redundant due to market shifts rather than individual performance?
Temp Work, Step-Back Roles, and Flight Risks
Did the individual step into contract work because permanent roles dried up? COVID forced many highly capable professionals into short-term contracts, project roles and interim appointments.
Good people moved because the market moved.
The safety profession was no exception. Major infrastructure paused. Manufacturing slowed. Logistics exploded. Healthcare went into overdrive. Many safety professionals followed demand, not dissatisfaction.
In a competitive market, not everyone could get the permanent role they wanted. Many senior professionals took temporary or step-back roles just to get back into work. Yes, they may move on when a better senior opportunity appears, but a company can still benefit from their high-level skills while they are there.
The Smart Employer’s Approach
The smartest employers now understand this.
It’s not just about the resume movement. They assess capability, leadership, technical depth and cultural fit. They look at outcomes delivered, not just time served. They recognise that the last five years required flexibility, pragmatism and courage, not blind loyalty.
If anything, movement since COVID can be a sign of strength.
It shows someone who stayed employed, stayed relevant and stayed in demand when the market was anything but stable.
The real risk is ignoring great talent because their resume reflects reality.
Because reality since 2020 has been messy. And hiring decisions need to reflect that.
