Public health job vacancies--who wants what, where?

This paper presents a snapshot of job vacancies in the public health workforce labour market. The analysis is based on 404 advertised public health jobs appearing in the press, and on-line job alerts over a 2-month period in mid 2003. The analysis reveals who was seeking employees, what formal qualifications and competencies were required, what salary and other conditions of employment were offered and where the vacant jobs were located. The study demonstrates the heterogeneity of the public health workforce, which limits definition of clear practice boundaries and complicates workforce planning. The findings further demonstrate the benefit of reviewing both the demand and the supply side of the labour market, and point to the value of repeated surveys of advertised jobs as part of an ongoing public health workforce monitoring and planning process.