Workers Clocking up Longer Hours
Added: 6:57PM Friday August 06, 2010
Source: ONE News
Questions over how much harder we're working as reports say people are toiling for longer hours as they cling to their jobs and there's also reports that bosses are taking advantage at a time of high unemployment.
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Jobless graduates forced back to uni
Added: 7:03PM Thursday August 05, 2010
Source: ONE News
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The number of people without jobs has surged to a 10-year high, with nearly 160,000 New Zealanders out of work.
That's raised further concerns about any so-called economic recovery. Nineteen thousand people lost their jobs in the last three months, leading to unemployed graduates returning to study, at a time when many universites are already overcrowed.
Graduate Orlando Luteru told ONE News he had tried for a job for six months before returning to study to increase his employment chances.
"Hopefully I'll try and get my foot in the door for accounts. I've applied for a few jobs but, as always, no one's really picking up," he said.
Unemployment is now sitting at 6.8% up from 6% three months ago. Economists had been predicting a slight rise.
One recruitment agency says some people are clearly desperate.
"We were working on a very discreet campaign recently for a contact centre and there were 200 applications for the roles. A high percentage of those people were unemployed," says Jane Kennelly, Frog recruitment director.
The government admits the sudden spike is disappointing.
"We've got to put it in perspective. It was sort of 7.1% in December last year and now it's 6.8. That last quarter of 6% was very much a surprise to everyone," said Social Development Minister Paula Bennett.
According to experts, the lower figure was a "rogue" result and gave false hope.
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Today's more stark numbers are considered the reality and an indication the recovery is very slow.
"I think the HLFS (Household Labour Force Survey) certainly over-estimated the extent of the recovery earlier this year. It turns out it's a bit more normal. So unemployment does tend to linger quite high after recessions," says Dominick Stephens, Westpac economist.
Labour's finance spokesman David Cunliffe says it shows that our economy is "bouncing along the bottom of the trough, fallen through a hole in the road".
It's a road to recovery that is now looking much longer.
