Australian Job Losses

[MR.]

Not nice at all to lose ones job. Job losses, hopefully minimal, will be the defining factor to alot of this talk on recession etc. It will be the undoing of the property market here in Australia. Our higher interest rates compared to other countries is our biggest advantage.

The unemployment rate is currently 4.3%
http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/mf/6202.0


Quotes: 14/11/08
- A well-placed source who is aware of ANZ's plans said it would axe 3000-3500 staff and contractors — 10% of its workforce.

- Qantas said it would slash up to 1500 jobs and Ford has said it would cut 800 jobs.
http://business.theage.com.au/busine...1113-66a2.html

[doctorj]

A lot of friends in professional services in Perth are being forced to take 3 weeks leave over xmas (unpaid if they don't have the leave balance). I've also started hearing stories of lay-offs in professional services in Sydney.

I also hear that BHP/RIO are deferring some projects on the expectation of lower commodity prices. Not good news for engineers either.

I think it'll really bite the Aus economy when the iron ore contracts are next renegotiated. Check out the difference between the contract and spot prices....

[prawn_86]

Citibank shedding 50000 staqff globally and Mac Bank hinting that they will reduce numbers (or grad employement will dry up at least).

Damn this economy! Masters here I come...

[MrBurns]

Citibank shedding 50000 staqff globally and Mac Bank hinting that they will reduce numbers (or grad employement will dry up at least).

Damn this economy! Masters here I come...

I think we're heading for 9% or 1,000,000 unemployed by the end of next year.

I got to say I feel like turning this machine off and running out into the sunshine,
I'm just about global financial crises'd out.

[Nyden]

Damn this economy! Masters here I come...

There is an upside here Prawn, hopefully by the time your education is complete - house prices will be much more affordable

[Real1ty]

I think we're heading for 9% or 1,000,000 unemployed by the end of next year.
.

How did you come up with that figure?

[MrBurns]

How did you come up with that figure?

JP Morgan, there was someone else too but I cant find it, makes sence to me the way people are being layed off at present.

AUSTRALIA'S jobless rate will more than double between now and 2010, when over one million people are expected to be out of work, as the global economic slowdown weighs on China, a leading international bank says.
JPMorgan Australia's chief economist Stephen Walters said a slowdown in China's economic growth will be detrimental to the creation of jobs in Australia in the next two years.

"We now expect the jobless rate to more than double to 9 per cent in late 2010, from the current 4.3 per cent,'' Mr Walters said.

Just in - Babcock & Brown to sack 850 staff: report

and so on and on and on...........................

[gfresh]

Heard a lot of companies have labor freezes on presently. Not laying off people yet, however not employing anybody new either. Probably waiting to see how things pan out next few months.

10.7M workers currently employed, currently 478k unemployed @ 4.3%. Double the unemployment rate to 8.6%, and you'd soon have ~956k unemployed. Around 9% you're heading into 1M unemployed.

JP Morgan has predicted 9%, and still standing behind their figures last I read - http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au...35-601,00.html

Not impossible, it wasn't that long ago we had above 10% unemployment. 15 years ago, no great depression going on - just harder times.

[arco]

.

September 1994 was the last time the nation's jobless rate started with a nine, when it registered 9.1%.

http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/storie...2/12437a31eb97

[MrBurns]

Lets face it we're at the top of the biggest bubble in EVERYTHING that anyones ever seen, falling from a very tall tree will hurt badly no matter what.

Shares were first, off 47% so far from the peak, next property all made worse by job losses, it snowballs, falling production, falling profits, falling employment, falling shares, falling house prices and away we go.......

[prawn_86]

Its not neccesarily a bad thing, i just wish the govs would stop intervening and let it happen. The longer they try and hold it up for the harder it will crash/burst/pop etc

Someone in another thread used a very apt metaphor of a fire in a forest and then the forest re-growing again after it.

[MR.]

The actual unemployment was higher back in the early 90's.

The government intoduced the "Mature Age Allowance"

One could not retire until 65 years and alot of unemployed were 60 - 65 yrs. So all these 60 - 65 year olds on the unemployment list were transferred to the "Mature Age Allowance"

It made the unemployment figures better at the time. Giving perhaps people a little more confidence. And confidence is/was needed.

[gfresh]

Here is quick flashback to late 1993..

http://www.ausstats.abs.gov.au/ausst...62020_1293.pdf

Page 8 makes an interesting read for that time, and shows 1992 figures as well (11.1%)

[Moneybags]

Well you can add little old me to those numbers..........Boss called yesterday and I'm now unemployed Anyone need their wood chopping........

MB

[noirua]

The actual unemployment was higher back in the early 90's.

The government intoduced the "Mature Age Allowance"

One could not retire until 65 years and alot of unemployed were 60 - 65 yrs. So all these 60 - 65 year olds on the unemployment list were transferred to the "Mature Age Allowance"

It made the unemployment figures better at the time. Giving perhaps people a little more confidence. And confidence is/was needed.

There is a slight trend to employing older people who are more likely, when on pensions, to take a low paid job and not mind if they are asked to work only two or three days a week or take an extended unpaid holiday.

The silver haired brigade may well increasingly take much younger peoples jobs. Fair game I say.

[numbercruncher]

I think we're heading for 9% or 1,000,000 unemployed by the end of next year.

I got to say I feel like turning this machine off and running out into the sunshine,
I'm just about global financial crises'd out.

Your probably right ....


And when you consider that only 7 million people in Australia work fulltime it makes you stand back and think about bananas and all sorts of good things like that

[Prospector]

A company with whom we work put off two people yesterday Totally unexpected. They are into recruitment and consulting.

Mr Burns, I am so with you on that. I wish this damn recession would just happen so we can start to claw our way back. I DONT WANNA HEAR ABOUT IT ANYMORE!

Actually, I have just heard, make that SIX people!

[arco]

Well you can add little old me to those numbers..........Boss called yesterday and I'm now unemployed Anyone need their wood chopping........

MB

Sorry to hear that - any chance you could start up on your own?

[jeflin]

Every company is only concerned with their bottom line. Retrenchment is the measure of first resort.

The poor lose their job while the top management only forgo their bonuses.

[prawn_86]

I wish this damn recession would just happen so we can start to claw our way back.

Yep i agree. Another example of the failures of democracy with politicians trying to please the masses by keeping the bubble going.

The sooner the recession is over the sooner firms will start employing again, which is good for everyone...