If you knew in 2 years’ time that you would have 2500 job vacancies and be unable to fill them locally, what would you be doing now? Promote the hell out it, would be my response, especially now, as many people are re-evaluating decisions about their careers, how they live, where they live.
2500 was the figure provided in early March this year that state government modelling has predicted will be the shortfall of suitable applicants for job vacancies in the greater Rockhampton region in 2022. Perhaps, if new modelling was done now this figure might be different, not necessarily lower, as state and federal government have talked up fast tracking major infrastructure projects to help stimulate the economy and dampen the effects of the forthcoming recession.
Whatever the exact figure might now be the result is the same, we will have more jobs in the greater Rockhampton region than suitable applicants in less than 2 years time. Not a lot of time to train local people to fill them. Therefore, a good deal of the jobs will need to be filled by people from outside the region. And the opportunist would be adamantly marketing this now while people are seriously re-evaluating important life decisions.
Why then is no one talking about this in the local media and even more relevantly in national media? Especially as we crave to hear some good news amongst the pandemic, recession, lock-downs and restrictions stories. Is there little faith in the modelling! Are we to wait for the state election? Is the right thing not to talk up a region when others are in worse situation?
It is going to be a lot harder and more expensive after this pandemic is over to get the awareness you can get now. The media are desperate for advertising dollars.
But who pays? The Council is a bit cash strapped with the airport not bringing in the cash like it was. Local businesses; bit rough considering what they are going through at the moment. What about the multi-nationals that are still powering ahead in the resource sector and who likely be the main beneficiaries of such a job drive? They generally use employment agencies and will just pay what is needed to get them when they are ready? What about employment agencies then? They make their money filling the immediate vacancies.
Media organisations, yes, they’ve got space to fill, ask them to do it for free. To their credit they are filling space with free shop local messages, but to expect them to promote a region in other regions with a message, you be better of leaving where you are and move to Rockhampton, for free is unlikely to receive a favourable response, especially in these times.
Excuses, everyone has one and in 2022 one of them will be it that we didn’t do anything back in 2020 during covid-19, when people were seriously re-evaluating their circumstances, to address the problem of not enough suitable applicants for the jobs offered. And this problem compounds for local business who will find it even harder to keep their skilled staff as the multi-national offer bigger carrots.
If there are entities in this region that do plan 2 years ahead please get together now and plot how to attract suitably skilled people to move here. Don’t for one moment think that Rockhampton region will be the only region in 2022 with a job surplus and people will move here anyway. Cairns, a region that has arguably been affected worse by the pandemic than here, currently has more job opportunities listed on SEEK than Rockhampton. What will happen as things improve?
Capital cities is where we need to be advertising now, they are arguably where the economic and social effects of covid-19 will linger the longest. We have a message of opportunity and affordability, let’s start selling it now.