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RNZ News
6 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Jobseekers' battle not improving, taking a toll
Ata Patene says she's been looking for a job for more than a year without any luck. She has experience working in retail and hospitality and has tried applying for jobs through Seek, Indeed and in response to Facebook ads, as well as emailing companies directly. "I also applied in person, and attended 15 or 20 interviews, but barely ever get a call back. Even McDonald's didn't see fit to hire me, and other fast-food restaurants. I've also applied for volunteer positions, but was rejected from those as well." She said recruitment agencies had ghosted her and sometimes she ran out of job ads to apply for. She said it was "incredibly challenging". Ata Patene has been looking for a job for over a year. Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel "The emotional toll is significant, job hunting has taken over my life with more rejection letters than call backs. "I've been scammed while applying for work, which has made matters worse and added to my frustration. "I'm currently reliant on a benefit, but I'm not allowed to study full-time without risking my payments being cut off. This limitation makes it challenging for me to upskill and improve my employability." Patene said she was at a breaking point and feeling hopeless. She wanted to be able to earn an income to help support her family. "I'm willing to work for anyone, doing anything legal and appropriate. I'm flexible with regards to pay, hours and days - I'm open to overtime, part-time, full-time or casual work. "I'm desperate for an opportunity to get back on my feet." She said she had been told that one job she applied for in a mall had thousands of applicants. Ata Patene says she is at a breaking point and feels hopeless. Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel Data from Trade Me shows that Patene's experience is not unusual. In the past year, jobs on the site had attracted significant numbers of applications . An ad for an IHC Calf and Rural Scheme administrative assistant in Southland drew 998, an Idea Services support worker ad in Waikato had 753 and Farro Fresh received 740 applications for its ad for Christmas casuals. Ikea, which is due to open in Auckland soon, is working to hire 500 staff but media have reported that more than 15,000 people had applied to work there. Seek data shows application numbers for sport and recreation jobs are up 32 percent year-on-year, science and technology up 22 percent and insurance and superannuation up 29 percent. BNZ chief economist Mike Jones said the labour market was a tough place to be. "Even when we look at the hard numbers what we're seeing is job advertisements not really going anywhere. They're about 50 percent down from the peak and holding around those 11-year lows now for about a year. "I don't think the job market has got any worse but it's still very weak. "I think fewer vacancies coupled with the fact the working age population continues to grow means the competition for the jobs that are out there is intense." He said surveys showed businesses said they intended to hire more people over the coming 12 months but that had not happened yet. "Those job advertisements have yet to pick up at all. I think the first thing that needs to happen is a firmer recovery in the activity side of the economy which seems to be experiencing a couple of wobbles through the middle part of the year. "The labour market being the lagging part of the economy that it is, it's probably late this year or early next before we see any clear evidence the labour market is picking up again." He said the "discouraged worker effect" could be seen in falling labour participation rates. For men, the labour force participation rate is 75.1 percent and for women it is 66.6 percent. A year ago, that number was 75.8 percent for men and 67.3 percent for women. Just under 13 percent of people aged 15 to 24 were not in employment, education or training in the March quarter. "Unemployment at 5 percent might understate the weakness in the labour market because people are being discouraged and dropping out of the labour force. "Stopping looking for jobs, doing other things, going to training or moving overseas. "All that tends to go hand in hand with a weak labour market. That's going to be with us for a wee while yet." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Otago Daily Times
25-06-2025
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Record numbers of people chasing dwindling number of jobs
File photo - NZ job ads fall 2 percent in May on April, according to Seek NZ's employment report - Adverts were down 8 percent on a year ago - the slowest annual decline in more than two years - Applications per job ad rose 2 percent on April to a record high - Monthly salary growth 0.6 percent, annual rate 2.4 percent Record numbers of people are chasing a dwindling number of jobs, while wage rises are barely keeping pace with inflation, according to Seek. The online employment platform's May monthly report showed a fall in the number of jobs advertised, albeit at the slowest rate in more than two years. Seek country manager Rob Clark said the employment market felt like it was bumping along the bottom of the cycle, and while things were not getting better they were also not getting appreciably worse. "The comfort we can take is that we were seeing quite steady declines and now we're seeing a period of some stable results what most people are looking for are some signs of an improvement, but we're not really seeing any signs of that at the moment." Three regions had a rise in job adverts, with Wellington up 2 percent for the year ended May, its first rise in more than two years, Taranaki volumes rose 6 percent, and Southland up 1 percent, which were partly offset by sizeable falls in Auckland, Otago and Manawatū. Most industries recorded fewer adverts, but healthcare and medical, community services, and consulting had solid rises, while consumer facing industries gave up recent gains, and information and technology had a sharp contraction. Clark said the increase in consulting jobs might point to the use of short-term roles to fill specific gaps without having to hire full-time staff. Salaries edged higher in the three months ended May, but on an annual basis the growth slowed to pre-Covid levels of 2.4 percent, just below the rate of inflation. "When we have what is called a candidate-long market - more candidates than opportunities - then we typically see a slowdown in salary growth and that's exactly what we're seeing," Clark said. "Overall we have a market that remains very subdued, but it's not getting any worse, but it's not getting any better at a rapid rate either."
RNZ News
24-06-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Record numbers of people chasing a dwindling number of jobs
Job ads on Seek have fallen by 2 percent in May on April. (File photo) Photo: 123rf Record numbers of people are chasing a dwindling number of jobs, while wage rises are barely keeping pace with inflation, according to Seek. The online employment platform's May monthly report showed a fall in the number of jobs advertised, albeit at the slowest rate in more than two years. Seek country manager Rob Clark said the employment market felt like it was bumping along the bottom of the cycle, and while things were not getting better they were also not getting appreciably worse. "The comfort we can take is that we were seeing quite steady declines and now we're seeing a period of some stable results what most people are looking for are some signs of an improvement, but we're not really seeing any signs of that at the moment." Three regions had a rise in job adverts, with Wellington up 2 percent for the year ended May, its first rise in more than two years, Taranaki volumes rose 6 percent, and Southland up 1 percent, which were partly offset by sizeable falls in Auckland, Otago and Manawatū. Most industries recorded fewer adverts, but healthcare and medical, community services, and consulting had solid rises, while consumer facing industries gave up recent gains, and information and technology had a sharp contraction. Clark said the increase in consulting jobs might point to the use of short term roles to fill specific gaps without having to hire full time staff. Salaries edged higher in the three months ended May, but on an annual basis the growth slowed to pre-Covid levels of 2.4 percent, just below the rate of inflation. "When we have what is called a candidate-long market - more candidates than opportunities - then we typically see a slowdown in salary growth and that's exactly what we're seeing," Clark said. "Overall we have a market that remains very subdued, but it's not getting any worse, but it's not getting any better at a rapid rate either." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
SBS Australia
19-06-2025
- Business
- SBS Australia
Australia's unemployment rate set to remain steady at 4.1 per cent
Australia's jobless rate is expected to remain low, while those seeking new work are likely to receive a boost to their pay packets. Labour force figures for May, to be released on Thursday, are tipped to show the unemployment rate holds steady at 4.1 per cent. Economists predict about 20,000 new jobs were added to the economy for the month of May, following a bumper increase of 89,000 in April. With the labour force participation rate also set to remain unchanged at 67.1 per cent, the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures are poised to show a tightening of the jobs market. Listed salaries have increased by 3.6 per cent for the year to May, according to a report by online job site Seek. The site's advertised salary index showed growth in pay rates for new positions has remained steady over the past year. But monthly growth in May was just 0.2 per cent, the smallest one-month increase since October. Seek senior economist Blair Chapman said the increase in wages advertised was a welcome rise. "The growth in average advertised salaries is currently outpacing living costs, which is good news for those switching employers as they are likely gaining a real wage increase," he said. "This means they can purchase more goods and services or save some of their additional earnings." Treasurer Jim Chalmers said reducing unemployment levels had also been accompanied by a decrease in inflation. "No major advanced economy has combined unemployment in the low 4s with inflation under 2.5 and three years of continuous growth," he said in an address at the National Press Club on Wednesday. "We know this welcome progress in the national aggregate data doesn't always translate into how people are feeling and faring in local communities. But real wages are growing again." Chalmers has flagged potential tax reform during his second term in the role, which will be examined at a productivity summit to be held in Canberra in August. "This is all about testing the country's reform appetite. "I am prepared to do my bit, the government is prepared to do its bit, and what we'll find out in the course of the next few months is whether everyone is prepared to do their bit as well."
Yahoo
18-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Unemployment to hold steady as pay packets swell
Australia's jobless rate is tipped to remain low, while those seeking new work are in line for a boost to their pay packets. Labour force figures for May, to be released on Thursday, are tipped to show the unemployment rate hold steady at 4.1 per cent. Economists predict about 20,000 new jobs will be added to the economy for the month, following a bumper increase of 89,000 in April. With the labour force participation rate also set to remain unchanged at 67.1 per cent, the Australian Bureau of Statistics figures are poised to show a tightening of the jobs market. Listed salaries have increased by 3.6 per cent for the year to May, according to a report by online job site Seek. The site's advertised salary index showed growth in pay rates for new positions have remained steady over the past year. But monthly growth in May was just 0.2 per cent, the smallest one-month increase since October. Seek senior economist Blair Chapman said the increase in wages advertised was a welcome rise. "The growth in average advertised salaries is currently outpacing living costs, which is good news for those switching employers as they are likely gaining a real wage increase," he said. "This means they can purchase more goods and services or save some of their additional earnings." Treasurer Jim Chalmers said reducing levels of unemployment had come about while inflation had also been brought down. This is why economic reform matters. We've made a lot of progress together in our first term making our economy more productive, dynamic and resilient to help deliver a better standard of living for all know there's more to do and that's why the reform… — Jim Chalmers MP (@JEChalmers) June 18, 2025 "No major advanced economy has combined unemployment in the low 4s with inflation under 2.5 and three years of continuous growth," he said in an address at the National Press Club on Wednesday. "We know this welcome progress in the national aggregate data doesn't always translate into how people are feeling and faring in local communities. But real wages are growing again." The treasurer has flagged potential tax reform during his second term in the role, which will be examined at a productivity summit to be held in Canberra in August. "This is all about testing the country's reform appetite," Dr Chalmers said. "I am prepared to do my bit, the government is prepared to do its bit, and what we'll find out in the course of the next few months is whether everyone is prepared to do their bit as well."
