NZ Listener | October 3-9 2009 Vol 220 No 3621

by Ruth Laugesen

Most job seekers can expect a lot of rejections before getting the position they want. Ruth Laugesen looks at how the game is changing and homes in on the big employment growth areas.

Every recession is cruel on the young. As the economy limps out of a long harsh winter, unemployment has hit 16% for under-25s seeking work. Thousands of final-year university and polytech students are wondering whether to chance their luck in a barren job market or hole up for an extra year of study.

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Cuts in the May Budget included $50 million from teacher-staffing budgets in 2011 and 2012; the Government has yet to explain exactly where it will make the cuts. And Finance Minister Bill English recently warned doctors, nurses, teachers and other public servants to expect no pay increases once their deals expire, arguing they have already benefited from big increases in recent years.

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For young people, or those considering retraining, the message is that acquiring special knowledge will pay off in the long run. An ageing population and the accompanying departure of workers from the workforce across the developed world mean shortages of skilled workers will grow in coming years.

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Young workers are the most vulnerable in a downturn because they make up a large portion of new workers in any year. Some local data suggests they represent about a third of new hirings at any point in time. Institute of Policy Studies researchers Paul Callister and David Rea have estimated unemployment among under-25s will hit around 19% by the March quarter of 2011, based on Budget forecasts.

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