40,000 Aussies on JobSeeker for more than 10 years despite shortage of workers

Questions have been raised about why 40,000 people have been on JobSeeker for 10 years or more when Australia has a chronic labor shortage.

The Business Council of Australia highlighted the disturbing statistic on Wednesday, arguing that getting the long-term unemployed into jobs is a failure.

Council President Jennifer Westacott said that in such a tight labor market there was something ‘deeply wrong’ with the job placement system that was unable to get people into work.

“This should be aimed at improving the job placement system, to create more incentives for people to enter and stay in the labor market,” Ms Westacott told the Australian financial statement.

It comes after it was revealed that there are currently 438,500 job openings across Australia.

A recruiter revealed that applicants have made ridiculous attempts to appear looking for work, such as this individual who applied for a job as a materials engineer but had no experience or qualifications in the field

A recruitment agency previously accused some job seekers of disrupting the system.

The recruiters, which operate in New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and New Zealand, accused some job seekers of sending fake resumes just to meet the quota of applications they must submit to stay on JobSeeker .

The company claimed that 20 percent of the applications sent to them came from Aussies trying to cheat the system.

More than 2,000 applicants have been reported to authorities in just two months, a recruiter told Daily Mail Australia.

Some applicants have deliberately applied for jobs for which they are not qualified, including a cleaner who applied for a position as a materials engineer.

The role required the applicant to have lab testing experience and be accredited by the National Association of Testing Authorities.

The applicant only had experience as a delivery driver and cleaning help.

Another person applied for a job as a sheet metal worker, even though he only had experience as a babysitter, cleaner and shop assistant.

One applicant applied for a customer service/administrative position that required two years of experience.

They simply wrote on their CV: ‘Great communication skills. Customer service.’

Tuesday’s federal budget included a $40 biweekly increase for job seekers and youth benefits, as well as rent assistance increases.

Another alleged job seeker applied for a job as a sheet metal worker, citing only experience as a babysitter, cleaner and massage therapist assistant

After the pandemic period, many bosses have cried out to the workers as the nation faces a severe labor shortage

Ms Westacott welcomed the move but said it would need to be accompanied by other reforms to give those struggling for work a chance to seize the opportunities on offer in an extremely tight labor market.

Australia has been facing a chronic labor shortage since the pandemic closed the country’s borders and sent many long-term visa holders home.

Commenting on the 40,000 long-term recipients of a Job Seeker, Sky News presenter Paul Murray pointed out that there were 438,500 job openings in Australia.

“Now I have no doubt that some of those people are chronically unemployed for a whole collection for various reasons,” Mr Murray said.

“But I refuse to believe that a football stadium of people (40,000) is unemployed in this country.”

Hiring firm Maxima says industries particularly clamoring for workers include food manufacturing, retail and delivery, healthcare, IT, transportation and warehousing, call centers and mining.

Such is the desperation for workers that many employers are hiring people under the age of 17, with an estimated half a million children under the age of 17 working across Australia.

Bill Lang, executive director of Small Business Australia, struggled to find skilled labour, and turned to younger relatives to fill the gap.

Australia’s official unemployment rate is at the all-time low of 3.5, representing around half a million people actively looking for work.