Albert & Logan News, December 22, 2016
Youth employment has plunged across the greater Logan region, with some jobseekers applying for hundreds of jobs to no avail.
The participation rate for people aged 15-24 within the Logan-Beaudesert catchment dropped from 70.9 per to 65.4 per cent over the 12 months leading to October 2016. Despite this, job growth has been steady for the area’s general population, rising 3 per cent.
Beenleigh woman Tori Gills, 21, struggled to regain employment after she left the workforce to raise her daughter Ava four years ago.
“I had been searching online every day for about eight months and received nothing,” she said.
“It’s really difficult because everyone wants you to have a degree and 15 years’ experience and if you have no experience nobody wants to give you the opportunity to gain any.”
This year she took part in the YFS Parents Next program, which helps people with young children upskill, and she found work at the On Fleek Lashes and Beauty salon. “My advice for others is don’t stop, because someone eventually will give you a chance,” she said.
Employment Minister Curtis Pitt said while the overall state economy was strong, certain regions needed special attention to tackle employment issues.
“Creating jobs or training opportunities for young people is especially important because nobody wants to see young Queenslanders wherever they live consigned to the jobless scrap heap,” he said.