The latest jobs figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics paint a grim picture of the labour market in the Hunter as the impact of COVID-19 hits home.
Almost 10,000 jobs have been lost in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie in the past month, taking to the unemployment rate from 5.8 to 7.7 per cent.
A further 8,400 jobs have been lost during April in the Hunter Valley, where the jobless rate has risen from 5.0 to 5.3 per cent in the past month.
The retail, food, hospitality, tourism and arts sectors have been especially hit hard with forced shutdowns due to COVID-19 health restrictions
Hunter Business Chamber CEO, Bob Hawes says the true unemployment rate may be much higher than reported on the latest ABS figures.
"As analysts pointed out last week, the April figures do not account for the impact of JobKeeper and the face that many people who are receiving the wage subsidy are out of work but not actively seeking a job, so have not registered as unemployed'" he said.
"Of major concern is the rise in youth unemployment, which now sits at 18.7 per cent in Newcastle and Lake Macquarie and 15.7 per cent in the Hunter Valley."
"The loss of jobs in the younger age groups confirms the impact of restrictions on accommodation and food services, arts and recreation, traditionally sectors that employ young people," Mr Hawes said.
The latest unemployment figures come as Swansea MP and state opposition deputy leader, Yasmin Catley calls on the Berejiklian government to allow beauty salons to reopen across the Hunter and NSW.
She says NSW should follow the lead of Queensland and the Northern Territory which have allowed the beauty industry to resume with a limit of 10 customers at a time in their salons.
Yasmin Catley says it's unfair for beauty salons, which employ a large proportion of female workers, to remain closed while hairdressing salons are allowed to keep operating.
"It has certainly caused some confusion not allowing the beauty sector to go back to work, even though hairdressers have continued working during the pandemic with no known clusters of transmission, so it's time. Women want this, we want the beauty sector open. We want the economic benefit from it," she said.
 | ||||
| Hunter Business Chamber CEO Bob Hawes |
 |
| Swansea MP and NSW Deputy Opposition Leader Yasmin Catley |
