Otago is showing less stress than other regions but is not immune to the labour shortage problem, Chamber of Commerce chief executive Dougal McGowan said.
He noted information technology, marketing and middle to senior leadership roles were in high demand around the region.
''Planners and project managers, particularly in infrastructure and building, are in particularly high demand,'' Mr McGowan said from Australia yesterday.
Employment confidence in Otago showed the strongest improvement throughout the country for the September quarter, in the Westpac McDermott Miller employment confidence survey released yesterday, he said.
''Much of this [labour shortage] continues to be driven by the continued strength and record growth in tourism and In particular a rebound in primary export commodities prices,'' Mr McGowan said.
Westpac chief economist Dominick Stephens said the employment confidence index had risen to its highest level since 2008, before the economy felt the full brunt of the global financial crisis.
The index rose from 113.4 points for the quarter to June to 113.8 for September. Otago was just below halfway of all regions at 108.9 for September.
Auckland led with 119.8 points and Wellington was the least optimistic at 102.8.
''New Zealand workers are reporting increases in job opportunities and they expect that the number of job openings will continue to increase over the coming year,'' Mr Stephens said.
Mr McGowan said Dunedin still had a strong job market. Vacancies were being filled quickly and good numbers were applying, from both people looking to move to the city and those looking at moving jobs within the city.
''[However] over the coming change in seasons we'll also see a need for more unskilled workers throughout the region, with hospitality and service sectors needing short-term workers as well as employers in Central Otago needing contractors in the horticulture sector,'' he said.
The 2017 Hays global skills index was released yesterday, highlighting New Zealand's struggle to keep pace with labour demands.
Hays managing director Jason Walker said demand was much higher for professionals in high-skill industries, relative to medium and lower-skilled industries across the country, given a lot of routine, repetitive jobs were now, or would soon be, automated.
While New Zealand's participation rate had increased, so too had the creation of jobs, particularly in highly-skilled industries, he said.
''The latter has absorbed the former, leading to high demand for talent from employers in high-skill industries such as engineering and technology.
''The resulting wage pressure in high-skill industries cannot get more acute,'' Mr Walker said.
He said there was a ''talent mismatch'', suggesting a gap was emerging between the skills employers needed and those available in the labour market, which was frustrating for both jobseekers and employers alike.
''Unfortunately, those available in the labour market do not always possess the skills employers need, adding to the talent mismatch,'' Mr Walker said.
While the rise of technology and automation in the workplace would inevitably eliminate some job categories, Mr Walker said it was important to remember technology created demand for new jobs, as much as it would render others redundant.
''People must adapt their skillset to meet the new demand brought about by a more tech-centric work landscape,'' he said.
