Those under 40 tipped to be worst hit

WELLINGTON: A business coach guiding small and mediumsized business owners through the Covid19 crisis expects those under 40 years old will be hardest hit.

Bruce Wilson operates from Nelson as part of the global business and executive coaching franchise Action Coach.

He said demand for help had grown rapidly, attendance at business improvement webinars in New Zealand and overseas having grown more than 100%.

Applications for business improvement workshops and training funding were up by almost 300%.

Mr Wilson said resilience would get most people through the worst of what was to come, but the hardship associated with a decline in consumerism was likely to be a new experience for many who had ridden the wave of economic growth since the last deep recession 13 years ago.

‘‘That resilience will be a new experience and it’s going to take some adjusting. It’s going to be a huge shift in the mindset of particularly people under 40, I think.’’

Mr Wilson also said many welleducated people entering the workforce now were going to feel betrayed that the jobs they had hoped for would not be there for some time.

‘‘They’ve been told to be good, get your qualifications and there’ll be a job, but for it not to be there waiting . . . I think that’s the outlook that will have to be adjusted.’’

He specialised in coaching mainly owneroperators of businesses with staff numbers from just one or two up to about 25 workers.

He said noone saw Covid19 coming.

‘‘I was cruising along like most, thinking times were good and focusing on helping people refine their business, and then Covid hit.

‘‘It was like someone threw a whole deck of cards in the air but none of us know yet which way up they’ll drop.’’

Business coaches worked holistically, and often provided emotional and moral support, he said.

‘‘I’ve been working with my clients to wake them up to the seriousness of the change that’s coming.’’

The report, commissioned by the Nelson Regional Development Agency, showed the impact from Covid19 was likely to mean the loss of almost one in 10 jobs, most of them in lowskilled areas.

Regional earnings were expected to drop by $280 million, the hardesthit industries being transport, retail and accommodation.

However, the region’s strong primary production and manufacturing sectors would improve the region’s resilience, and an expected rebound in construction could support economic recovery from 2023. — RNZ