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COVID-19 kills job market

COVID-19 kills job market

I’ve been putting off doing this months JobFix blog as the jobs news has been so tragic that it barely seemed to matter, and let's be honest, we’ve all  either been restructured or undertaking our companies restructuring which is soul-destroying in its own right, so even more reason to put it off.

However, earlier in the week curiosity got the better of me and I went through the numbers and yes, it's as sad as I thought!

Very few organisations are looking for staff and the ones that are advertising are being inundated with applications. Over April and May JobFix advertised a total of 11 roles which is around 0.8% of last year’s numbers. Yes, you read it right, just 0.8%!!

I’ve been through a few of the economic cycles and no previous economic downturn has struck the economy as quickly as this one. Traditionally the economic impact starts in one sector and takes a few weeks or months before becoming a tsunami, whereas this one struck instantly.

Below are a couple of graphs to demonstrate the impact.

I’m sure anyone looking at the numbers in the accommodation, food and beverage, or tourist sectors will recognise the same trend in their graphs.

In the last couple of weeks as the lockdown measures have eased, a small heartbeat has returned with a couple of pages of job ads keeping the pulse going, but it will be a long time into the future before we are back to a healthy market place. Paddy O’Brien reflects on how from Remarkable Labour is seeing the marketplace and offers some sage advice to candidates and employers.

In the meantime, JobFix and the Lakes Weekly together remain the bedrock for locals who hang out for the Tuesday fix of what jobs are available. The number of people going onto the JobFix site looking for any opportunity has gone up significantly over the same period as more candidates become available. The one area that has got life still is in the construction area where qualified tradespeople remain in demand.

Traditionally advertising has been a big recruitment cost, but now that’s one area that we can help. We’ve halved our rates including our recruitment rates to help local businesses get back on its feet. Like every business in the region, we are going to need everyone’s collective help to come back. Many local businesses have fantastic offers and we are no different. If you need help and we can help, please give us a call and see how we can be an efficient part of your recovery and you in ours.

David Gibbs
Queenstown Media Group
General Manager