Illawarra unemployment rates: Women worst hit by job losses during pandemic
Shocking new data reveals the true figure of our locally unemployed after COVID hit some of the region’s biggest businesses. However, a number of male-dominated industries are still going strong with 682 local jobs on offer. CAN YOU OFFER A LOCAL A JOB?
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The unemployment rate in the Illawarra has climbed over the past year as the coronavirus pandemic wreaks havoc on the local economy, with women hit particularly hard.
According to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics for August 2020, 6.89 per cent of adults in the Illawarra are jobless in comparison to just 5.2 per cent for the same month a year ago.
The figures reveal the shocking toll inflicted particularly on women, with the unemployment rate jumping from 3.38 per cent to 7.41 per cent over the past 12 months to August. The unemployment rate for men dropped slightly, with business remaining strong across the region’s male-dominated industries.
BlueScope, which employs 3500 across the Illawarra, confirmed it was able to maintain its full workforce despite the pressures of the pandemic, while also hiring new workers.
“While COVID-19 has caused many disruptions to workplaces and the economy, we have been able to safely continue making steel products across our manufacturing sites and support our customers,” a spokesman said.
“In terms of employment, we have been fortunate enough to take on new cadets and apprentices this year as per previous years.”
According to data from Adzuna, the majority of jobs across the region come from the health and construction sectors, which are set to boom further with the construction and staffing of a new hospital at Shellharbour, and the construction of a new pipeline at the Port Kembla Gas Terminal.
The NSW Government approved plans for a multimillion-dollar modification to the Port Kembla Lateral Pipeline just days ago, which will increase gas supply into the east coast network and put downward pressure on energy prices, as well as creating new jobs in the Illawarra.
Kiama MP Gareth Ward said the $51 million economic investment would create around 60 new construction jobs based in Port Kembla.
“It’s one of many projects we’re accelerating to support jobs and the construction industry as we ride out the pandemic and set our sights on recovery,” he said.
However, one of the Illawarra’s other major employers, the University of Wollongong, has suffered severe financial pressure, with border closures causing sudden declines in international student enrolments.
In July 2020, UOW staff voted to temporarily vary their employment conditions to minimise job losses, however, in a statement the university confirmed that to date, there have been no forced redundancies directly resulting from COVID-19.
“There has been a reduction in the number of hours available for casual staff because of the drop in student numbers,” a spokesman for UOW said.
Although early indicators for 2021 domestic student enrolments are positive, the spokesman said it was “impossible” to predict medium- or long-term staffing levels at the university due to the high level of uncertainty regarding the future return of international students.
According to the ABS, jobs in the Illawarra are currently hard to come by, with data showing
that as of August, about 5300 Illawarra residents had been out of work for between 13 and 51 weeks, compared to just 2700 people in August 2019. The statistics were also backed up by Adzuna, with figures showing there are currently just 682 jobs available across all industries in the Illawarra.