Today there has been a deluge of statistics on unemployment, and they make depressing reading for sure
- Unemployment at 6.5%
- 150,000 Kiwis out of work, up 12,000 over the past three months
- Highest unemployment in 15 years
- Unemployment up 37% since National came into office
- Maori Unemployment up from 12.6% to 14.2%,
Ugly numbers, but for many people it is so much more than just numbers, it is reality. In my electorate office, and I am sure in other electorate offices across the country, I have had a number of people badly affected by the loss of jobs. The woman who lost her public service job, at the same time as her son’s company that she had been a guarantor for went bust. The manager in his 50s who unemployed for the first time in his life was spiralling into depression. The graduates applying for, and missing out on, cleaning and retail jobs.
The statistics might show we are coming out of a recession but that is meaningless to those who have lost their jobs, and to the families that are affected.
The government is still to show us the plan to invest in people who have lost their jobs. In Australia there have been large scale investments in skills and training, and in research and development. In New Zealand we have seen cuts to adult and community education and research and development tax credits.
National used to talk a lot about the wage gap between Australia and New Zealand. Well here is another gap. New Zealand went into the recession with a lower unemployment rate than Australia. Australia’s unemployment rate is now 5.7%, stable this quarter. Our is now 6.5% up .05% this quarter.
Maybe Rodney is right, when it comes to jobs this is a do nothing government, seemingly without a plan.
Aw man, don’t forget to mourn on Sunday (I’m going to wear black). I still can’t believe the election result
Yes, our economy isn’t looking good.
Interesting analysis Mr Robertson. The unemployment statistics are certainly nothing to cheer about and as you say these are real people who are bearing the brunt of the global recession.
If there is any silver lining it’s that unemployment is forecast now to be lower than the earlier forecasts and we’re now officially out of recession. It seems we’ve got to this point without piling too many billions more expenditure on the government credit card for next generations to pay.
I think that puts into perspective Labour’s promises to spend at least $6 billion more. It would have piled very large interest costs on future taxpayers, which means fewer services could have been afforded.
I think this government has tread a good balance between keeping the economy moving and not loading too much debt on future taxpayers. It seems like the Government does have a plan, and Labour doesn’t.
Rude and crude Iprent from the Standard
This comment is offensive and has nothing to do with Red Alert or this post. Balance deleted. Trevor
Tim, is your name actually Bill English? If not you sound scarily like him. You (both) seem to have a very naive view of employment (you probably prefer the dehumanising term ‘labour markets’).
You forget about things like loss of skills, such as the many apprentices that have been laid off from their trades, with many of them probably now being disillusioned with their former occupation in NZ. Things like lack of private sector skills training over along period was the real ‘handbrake on growth’ that was holding our economy back.
Similarly I’m sure all the skilled construction workers who have been laid off, despite there being a longer term skill shortage, will be looking to Australia for work on govt stimulus projects, as well as on the spinoff projects that this govt spending stimulates.
Tim,
It won’t matter what the govt books look like if your population has no skills, no productivity, low wages and underinvested businesses. All the skills, creativity and most valuable workers will be living elsewhere and NZ will be on the fast track to the third world. If you can show me what measures are being taken for us to avoid this fate (ie a re-run of 1990-1999) please detail them.
New Zealand went into the recession with a lower unemployment rate than Australia.
Indeed we did – a full YEAR before Australia went into recession.
Thanks in no small part to a poorly timed drought that wiped out a few billion dollars of value.
[...] wanted to expand quickly on Grant’s post [...]
Yet a staggering 80% are happy with the way the government is handling the recession.