Job advertisements fell last month as firms reacted to the slowdown in economic activity since the middle of the year.
ANZ New Zealand's monthly survey shows newspaper and online job ads fell a seasonally-adjusted 0.8% to just below 31,957 in November.
Of this, newspaper ads fell nearly 5%, with Wellington the lowest in the survey since 2005 and Auckland at its second lowest level in that period. The number of online ads was unchanged.
The demand for staff continued to pick up in Canterbury.
ANZ senior economist Sharon Zollner said job ads lag the rest of the economic cycle and the fall is likely to be a reaction to the dip taken by the economy in the third quarter.
Ms Zollner said the figures indicate unemployment will hover about 7% over the next six months.
