If a 15 per cent youth unemployment rate in the Hunter was described as “scarily high” in the pages of the Mercury in January, then news that the region’s jobless rate has since risen to more than 20 per cent is bordering on catastrophic.
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The latest Australia Bureau of Statistics figures show that youth unemployment in the Hunter, outside Newcastle, is the highest in the state at 20.6 per cent.
This is significantly higher than Newcastle (15.1 per cent) and Lake Macquarie (14.9 per cent) and is monstrous compared with Sydney’s northern beaches, where only about 5 per cent of 15 to 24 year olds are out of work.
Youth unemployment became a problem for the Maitland area in the 18 months between January 2013, and June 2014, when the rate sky rocketed from 5.8 per cent to 16.8 per cent.
The mining downturn and financial pressure on small businesses have repeatedly been blamed for the trend.
But, no matter what the reason is, consistently high youth unemployment means young people who want to stay in Maitland may be forced out of the city to find work so they can pay their bills.
Addressing the rise in youth unemployment should be a key target of Maitland Business Chamber’s new campaign.
The Mercury reported today that the chamber has organised a forum in the hope that the region’s brightest minds and most innovative thinkers can get their heads together and figure out how Maitland can prosper in the long term, beyond 2020.
The forum will consider how The Levee revamp and tourism could boost the region’s economy and fuel employment.
Given that young people are often well-suited to jobs in tourism and retail, the business chamber forum could be a major step in addressing youth unemployment.
