Kate Ross: Swivel Careers founder on students struggling to find summer jobs amid increased competition

Students looking for summer work are struggling to land roles, as there's enormous competition for entry-level roles.

Retail NZ says businesses are seeing a 'much higher calibre' of potential applicants looking for jobs.

Swivel Careers founder Kate Ross says even people with full qualifications are finding it tough to land the right roles.

"There's just not enough work out there right now. The economy has been slow all year - the opportunities, even for retail and hospitality, that's all slowed down and that's generally where students out of school get their weekends in there."

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Now, students are struggling to find summer work with enormous
amounts of competition in the job market and businesses not
taking on as many applicants. At the moment, retail New
Zealands's retailers had seen a much higher caliber of people
applying for jobs. Kate Ross is the founder of Swivel Careers,
which helps seventeen to twenty five year olds find work,
and she's with us now.

Speaker 2 (00:18):
Hey, Kate, hi, how's it going?

Speaker 1 (00:21):
Very good? Thank you? What's going on here? Why kids
finding it hard to find jobs?

Speaker 2 (00:26):
Well, the economy right now is just so tough. So
even people with qualifications are you know, are finding it
hard to find work. So, you know, further down the
food chain, when you've got students who've got far less experience,
there's less opportunities and.

Speaker 1 (00:39):
So as a result, you've got people people further up
the age brackets, presumably further up the experience chain, they're
unable to find work there coming down, pushing the kids out.

Speaker 2 (00:48):
That's exactly right. And there's just not enough work out
there right now with the economy that's been so slow
all year. The opportunities even for you know, the retailers
of hospitality that's all slowed down the next where you know,
the students out of school get their their weekend and
their holiday work. So with university students now leaving and
less opportunities to go into corporate work, they're unfortunately having

(01:10):
to fall back onto that retail works, which also isn't there.
So there's a really big group of individuals that are
struggling to find employment.

Speaker 1 (01:18):
Worst you've ever seen.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
I think it's right up there. Like I managed a
company through the recession, it was different because obviously in
the recession there was no jobs for anyone, and there
was organizations just closing left, right and center. But for
kids right now, for students right now, to find work,
it's really really tough. There's hundreds and hundreds of applicants
applying through second training just for that one role. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:40):
Now, I mean we're talking about in some of the cases,
right we will be talking about school aged kids. It's
not going to break their lives as it if they
don't find to summer job. But I imagine for some of them,
are you're getting up there in the twenty five year
twenty five year old that is actually quite significant, isn't it.

Speaker 2 (01:56):
It's really significant. And what we're also seeing is there
are a lot of people that are university and groups
and just thinking, do you know what, I'm just going
to head to Australia hoping there's work over and Setney
in Melbourne because there's nothing here. And that's how they're
thinking at that young age. Normally we get at least
a couple of good years in the New Zealand market
before they decide to do their oe, but they're now thinking, right,
there's packs. I'm thinking, you know what, there's nothing here

(02:18):
for me, So I'm just going to go across the
burch and see if I can find something.

Speaker 1 (02:20):
Hey, Kate, so I've got a text you saying actually,
students are looking in the wrong place for work. I'm
a student myself. There's plenty of jobs and ag and
horticulture picking fruit and such.

Speaker 2 (02:29):
So say that Christian again, throw I must it.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
So somebody's text in saying, actually there are plenty of
jobs available in agriculture and horticulture doing things like pecking fruit.

Speaker 2 (02:39):
I mean, yes, there's always that need because obviously at
this time of year with the summer coming on, but
that is the if when you be your career, then
great and it's a role that you can get as
a summer role. But not everybody lives in the Hawk's
Bay or lives in those fruit picking districts. So yes,
there's there's probably the opportunity there, but that's not going
to help everybody. There's a lot of people out there

(02:59):
and cities and small towns that rely on that hospitality, retail,
tartwork to keep them going in a little bit petty cash.

Speaker 1 (03:07):
Yeah, fair enough, Kate, thank you for talking us through
to appreciate it is Kate Ross Swivel Careers. For more
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