Job market holds up
Why fewer Bay people went on the dole this lockdown
The Bay of Plenty job market has come through the latest lockdown relatively unscathed, new figures show. However, the economic bounceback could be slower and weaker than last year because of reduced Government spending, a business leader says.
Ministry of Social Development figures show the number of people on Jobseeker benefits grew by 738 in the Bay of Plenty Regional Council area in the first three weeks of lockdown. This took the total number of people to 16,128.
That spike, partly caused by the traditional end of the kiwifruit season, is much lower than last year’s lockdown when 1590 signed on for the benefit in the first three weeks.
Recruitment company Q Jumpers co-founder and chief executive Simon Oldham said this lockdown was “very different” to the last, with employers holding on to staff — through the short-term help of the wage subsidy — after finding it difficult to rehire last year.
Only a few companies implemented hiring freezes this time, compared with most doing it in 2020.
In the first lockdown, there were “massive” lay-offs and recruitment advertising dropped 88 per cent between March and April.
Between July and August this year, advertising spend was up 20 per cent but it had slowed in the first eight days of September, Oldham said.
The agency’s clients were still struggling to find staff.
He said the spike in unemployment last month could be linked to the kiwifruit pruning season ending in August.
Talent ID recruitment and human resource specialist Holly Opper said the skills shortage alongside people being picky about jobs had seen the job market stagnate.
While plenty of jobs were available, many needed specific skills or experience, she said.
In terms of listings, she had only seen one job pulled due to the lockdown with “plenty” of other roles coming up over the past two weeks which had not slowed.
Opper said some industries were more affected than others, and people might need to diversify.
“They need to understand that many skills are transferable and they need to value their experiences. Having the right attitude goes a long way too.”
Priority One chief executive Nigel Tutt said the increase in jobseekers