Latest news with #RebeccaThomson
RNZ News
4 hours ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Wellington employment market 'pretty Hunger Games', jobseeker says
Photo: 123RF After about a year of job hunting in Wellington, communications experts Rebecca Thomson and Emily Turner have seen a lot. Sometimes they apply for a job and get no response. Other times, the job remains advertised while interviews are happening. In one case, applying for a three-month contract was to involve a full 45-minute interview, then a coffee chat - but then the advertiser decided not to fill the position. "It feels pretty Hunger Games out there, sort of far more people than jobs, across the board," Thomson said. "It can be like a really bad dating situation," Turner said. "It's like permanently being ghosted from a very bad date, or not even a date because that would be the interview … it's putting your best foot forward, doing some really good chat and banter and thinking it's all going really well, and then nothing." Turner said she had about six interviews for roles, from about 20 applications. "I've got a very clear approach of what I'm applying for, I don't do a sort of scatter gun approach, I apply for roles that I know I've got a clear go at getting." She said she had asked recruiters how many people were applying for senior communications roles and had been told that it could be 80 to 100. Thomson said she had picked up freelance work along the way. "But in terms of full-time employment it's been a year. We're both highly skilled people that have worked on an array of projects and we're not the only ones." The pair have started an informal network for Wellington job hunters, where people can get together to support each other and share tips and information about the employment market. "We set it up to get to be somewhere where people can meet and have a chat in a casual, friendly environment," Thomson said. "It's tough out there and people are mentally finding it tough ." Some people want advice on how to put mortgage payments on hold, how to cover the cost of car registration or body corporate fees without regular income, but other times the network might share details of jobs that might suit other people. Thomson said from the initial meeting with two of them, their next meeting attracted eight. Another meeting was planned for this week and more people were offering their support online. "I've had a few DMs (direct messages) from people saying 'I can't come but this is great'," Thomson said. Gareth Kiernan, chief forecaster at Infometrics, said it was unlikely the Wellington employment market would turn around soon . "There's certainly not any signs that any time soon the pressure from government is going to change on either employment numbers or departmental spending. "Often what we've seen in the past, if we went back to the previous National government from 2008 onwards they had a sinking lid on employment, it was not as tough but reasonably tough, but at the same time they had a bit more room fiscally so there was more consulting work going on. This time the pressure is very much on both sides." Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan. Photo: Supplied He said the public sector crackdown was having a flow-on effect on the private sector in Wellington. "It may be after 18 months we're through the worst of it but it's hard to see it turning around and employment picking up any time soon." The annual average unemployment rate in Wellington City was 4.8 percent in the year to March, up from 3.4 percent in the previous 12 months. Kiernan said Wellington had previously had unemployment well below the national average but the gap had closed. Jarrod Kerr, chief economist at Kiwibank, said he thought it could be six months before the Wellington situation improved, "but probably more like a year". "It's the harsh reality of an RBNZ(Reserve Bank)-induced recession and significant cuts in the public sector. We forecast an improvement, which keeps getting delayed, by the end of the year, and we look into 2026 with more confidence." Thomson said anyone who wanted to join the network could find them on LinkedIn. "We wanted to keep it sort of friendly and open - people don't have to join some page to be part of it … it's a space to decompress and have a coffee or tea and chat with some like-minded people." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
8 hours ago
- Business
- RNZ News
Wellington emploment market 'pretty Hunger Games', jobseeker says
Photo: 123RF After about a year of job hunting in Wellington, communications experts Rebecca Thomson and Emily Turner have seen a lot. Sometimes they apply for a job and get no response. Other times, the job remains advertised while interviews are happening. In one case, applying for a three-month contract was to involve a full 45-minute interview, then a coffee chat - but then the advertiser decided not to fill the position. "It feels pretty Hunger Games out there, sort of far more people than jobs, across the board," Thomson said. "It can be like a really bad dating situation," Turner said. "It's like permanently being ghosted from a very bad date, or not even a date because that would be the interview … it's putting your best foot forward, doing some really good chat and banter and thinking it's all going really well, and then nothing." Turner said she had about six interviews for roles, from about 20 applications. "I've got a very clear approach of what I'm applying for, I don't do a sort of scatter gun approach, I apply for roles that I know I've got a clear go at getting." She said she had asked recruiters how many people were applying for senior communications roles and had been told that it could be 80 to 100. Thomson said she had picked up freelance work along the way. "But in terms of full-time employment it's been a year. We're both highly skilled people that have worked on an array of projects and we're not the only ones." The pair have started an informal network for Wellington job hunters, where people can get together to support each other and share tips and information about the employment market. "We set it up to get to be somewhere where people can meet and have a chat in a casual, friendly environment," Thomson said. "It's tough out there and people are mentally finding it tough ." Some people want advice on how to put mortgage payments on hold, how to cover the cost of car registration or body corporate fees without regular income, but other times the network might share details of jobs that might suit other people. Thomson said from the initial meeting with two of them, their next meeting attracted eight. Another meeting was planned for this week and more people were offering their support online. "I've had a few DMs (direct messages) from people saying 'I can't come but this is great'," Thomson said. Gareth Kiernan, chief forecaster at Infometrics, said it was unlikely the Wellington employment market would turn around soon . "There's certainly not any signs that any time soon the pressure from government is going to change on either employment numbers or departmental spending. "Often what we've seen in the past, if we went back to the previous National government from 2008 onwards they had a sinking lid on employment, it was not as tough but reasonably tough, but at the same time they had a bit more room fiscally so there was more consulting work going on. This time the pressure is very much on both sides." Infometrics chief forecaster Gareth Kiernan. Photo: Supplied He said the public sector crackdown was having a flow-on effect on the private sector in Wellington. "It may be after 18 months we're through the worst of it but it's hard to see it turning around and employment picking up any time soon." The annual average unemployment rate in Wellington City was 4.8 percent in the year to March, up from 3.4 percent in the previous 12 months. Kiernan said Wellington had previously had unemployment well below the national average but the gap had closed. Jarrod Kerr, chief economist at Kiwibank, said he thought it could be six months before the Wellington situation improved, "but probably more like a year". "It's the harsh reality of an RBNZ(Reserve Bank)-induced recession and significant cuts in the public sector. We forecast an improvement, which keeps getting delayed, by the end of the year, and we look into 2026 with more confidence." Thomson said anyone who wanted to join the network could find them on LinkedIn. "We wanted to keep it sort of friendly and open - people don't have to join some page to be part of it … it's a space to decompress and have a coffee or tea and chat with some like-minded people." Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
Reuters
20-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
New Zealand's budget cuts punish public sector, business and workers
WELLINGTON, May 21 (Reuters) - At a trendy cafe in downtown Wellington, job seekers gather to share tips on how to find work in New Zealand's capital, where deep government spending cuts have led to thousands of public sector job losses and squeezed the city's economy. Rebecca Thomson, a communications specialist who started the informal support group after she couldn't find work as a government contractor during the cuts, says competition for positions is fierce. "We were told survive until 2025 and it will get better. Well, we're now in May 2025 and it doesn't feel better," said Thomson, who is currently doing paid freelance work. New Zealand's conservative coalition government releases its annual budget on Thursday and is expected to continue to push fiscal discipline with many ministries not expected to see budget increases. Spending cuts since December 2023 have been felt across the wider economy but perhaps most acutely in Wellington, a city of nearly 210,000 where the government has historically been a major employer. House prices in Wellington have plunged 6.8% over the past year, far exceeding the national decline of 1.1%. Population growth stagnated in 2024, contrasting with a 1.7% increase nationwide. Consumer and economic sentiment in the city remains lower than in many other regions, with businesses and residents expressing concern over the city's prospects. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was elected in 2023, promising to cut "wasteful spending". His campaign for fiscal discipline preceded a significantly more high profile push by U.S. President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk to make Washington more efficient, which has led to the loss of thousands of U.S. public sector jobs. "It's pretty clear that the impact on Wellington, from the government baseline spending cuts, and also the reduction in spending on contractors, has been quite negative," said Westpac New Zealand Chief Economist Kelly Eckhold. "You can see that in pretty much any indicator of activity or house prices going on in Wellington right now." According to data from the Public Service Commission, public sector employment fell 4.2% in the year leading up to December 2024. Additionally, the government slashed NZ$300 million ($177.63 million) or about a third of the budget allocated to hiring contractors in the year to June 30, 2024, further tightening the purse strings. Several infrastructure projects were cancelled, including much of Wellington's flagship public transport project. Baseline spending at the upcoming 2025 budget is expected to be smallest in a decade. While the government has foreshadowed an increase in infrastructure spending, the overall fiscal strategy remains tight and is unlikely to help Wellington's economy. Finance Minister Nicola Willis said in a speech earlier this month that a tight fiscal strategy was necessary to keep interest rates low and ensure New Zealand continues to be seen as a good place to invest. That fiscal prudence combined with New Zealand's relatively low government debt is seen as safeguarding the country's economic stability and keeping a favourable sovereign credit rating. However, opposition leader Chris Hipkins said the cuts have led to increased spending on unemployment benefits. "Now is exactly the time for government to make the investments we need in infrastructure, housing, health, and our environment so we are creating jobs and get New Zealand moving again," Hipkins argued in a pre-Budget speech. But while the cuts have led to public sector strikes, the latest polls indicate that the current coalition of the National Party, New Zealand First and ACT would retain power in an election. Economists say fiscal tightening is creating ripple effects across the economy. Ganesh Nana, former commissioner of the now-defunct Productivity Commission, and 14 other economists, wrote to the prime minister and finance minister in November, warning their approach risked "a long-lasting hollowing-out" of business. "When redundancies occur, affected individuals don't simply wait for the private sector to step in," Nana told Reuters. "They often seek opportunities abroad, leading to an immediate loss of capacity for the New Zealand economy." Shay Peters, chief executive for recruiter Robert Walters in New Zealand and Australia, said there was general nervousness in the contractor community for the next financial year, which starts July 1. "In Wellington, we're seeing institutionalised hospitality organisations shutting down," he said. "It's just pretty dire." Emily Turner, who has been working in various public service jobs for 25 years, finished her contract as a strategic communications manager at the Workforce Development Council in Wellington last June and thought she'd have work by Christmas. She is now living off her savings and has been unable to add anything to her retirement fund. Turner said she'd be keen to leave Wellington but with a mortgage and lower house prices, such a move is not an option. "I'm in a financial trap," she said. ($1 = 1.6889 New Zealand dollars)
