IS THERE SUCH A THING AS A SAFE JOB ANYMORE?
The pressures in the job market, from the mining downturn to technological disruption of industry, often make it difficult to see yourself on a secure career path. Add to this relatively high overall unemployment figures and you have the perfect cocktail for fear, uncertainty and doubt.
The most recent Bureau of Statistics figures* show that the jobless rate is fairly steady at around 5.8% with almost 12 million people in the workforce, and unemployment at over 700, 000. And some commentators have described youth unemployment, which was hovering around 12% at the start of the year, as stubbornly high.
Job security is a big issue both for school leavers looking for their first paying job, for employees who are under pressure from rapid changes in the labour market, and for business owner/operators determined to maintain growth and profitability. Uncertainty leads to stress and fear about the changes that are coming.
So why are some people able to weather the storm and adapt to those changes, whilst others of us struggle?
Part of the solution is having the capacity and attitude to embrace new opportunities, investing in yourself by maintaining skills and finding new pathways to employability.
The other is to see skills acquisition as key to professional development. If you have an idea of where you might want to head, map out the steps through training and professional development. As you continuously gain new knowledge and skills you bolster your employability.
It’s about retaining control, and the competitive edge when it comes to promotion, entering or re-entering the workforce.
EMPLOYABILITY SOLUTIONS FOR COMPETITIVE WORKFORCES
When you’re first starting out, it’s often hard enough to work out how to get from A to B, let alone identify all the steps involved towards working your way up to running the show.
Additionally, as the pace of change impacts the labour market, it’s important to understand that learning never stops – that you need to keep on top of new information and regulations to maintain your qualifications and compliancies throughout your career.
Let’s take the electrical industry, for example. You might decide to specialize in Hazardous Areas and establish a career pathway which can eventually lead to career opportunities in the global energy, mining and manufacturing companies.
You might have solid skills but there are still steps to take if you plan to advance your career.
WHY AN INTERNATIONAL CERTIFICATION MAKES SENSE
Hazardous Area (Explosives Atmosphere) courses deliver professional, skilled and compliant graduates, prepared to take the next step towards securing an internationally recognized IECEx certification.
IECEx recognises the skills, knowledge and competence of persons working in Explosives Atmospheres, providing assurance of independent verification of skills held by electrical workers.
Competency Training’s internationally recognized training will help you attain the global skills sets that will improve your chances of local and global employability.
PATHS OUT OF YOUTH UNEMPLOYMENT
Tackling youth unemployment is a significant policy focus for both major political parties in the lead up to the July election.
This year’s Federal Government Budget had news for young people focussed on the challenge of breaking into the workforce with a new intern scheme – Youth Jobs PaTH: Prepare, Trial, Hire.
Under the scheme, businesses will be able to employ young job seekers either directly, through labour hire arrangements, or combined with an apprenticeship or traineeship. This could mean as many as 120 000 internships over four years.
The aim of the programme is to see job seekers and businesses work together to design an internship placement of 4 to 12 weeks, during which the job seeker will work 15 to 25 hours per week. They’ll be paid $200 per fortnight on top of their regular income support payment while participating in the internship.
The Labor Party’s Youth Jobs Policy also focuses on transition from study to work. “Youth Jobs Connect” will be piloted in 15 locations where youth unemployment is significantly above the national average.
It will provide one-on-one coaching to help young people in areas of high youth unemployment make decisions about available career opportunities that will work for them, as well as the education and skills they will need to get there.
The program will broker opportunities for work experience with local employers with the aim of ensuring young people get a practical understanding of what employers expect and what careers they may want to pursue.
Irrespective of these policies, it comes down to taking active steps to work out what’s available – and take full advantage of learning opportunities to help take that step towards ongoing employment.
Sources:
*ABS Labour Force Australia March 2016
*Liberal Party: Creating a path to real jobs for young people https://www.liberal.org.au/latest-news/2016/05/03/creating-path-real-jobs-young-people
*ALP Youth Jobs Pathway Policy http://www.100positivepolicies.org.au/youth_jobs_pathway
