The Australian Bureau of Statistics ( ABS ) has just released employment figures for the Wollongong area. This sector takes in an arc from Sutherland,on the southern outskirts of Sydney to Bateman's Bay - and includes a small section of the Southern Highlands.
In previous years Wollongong has had an above average unemployment rate, caused by a variety of factors. The latest rate is a pleasing 5.6% - which compares favourably with the 8.5% of last year and a previous peak of 10.7%.
The improvement can relate to the lifting of draconian unfair dismissal laws. It was simply too time consuming - and far too expensive - to remove an unsatisfactory employee - and so industry settled on a smaller, permanent workforce which met excess demand by working overtime.
With the right to hire and fire restored, industry is again hiring.
Unfortunately Wollongong still lags behind the national average of 4.8% and in part this is due to the unreliability of the railway system to deliver workers to Sydney jobs on time.
Trains are slow and over crowded - and even moderate rain or high winds sees the line shut down and replaced by buses because of slippage and safety concerns. As a result, a Wollongong address on an employment application is doomed to failure because employers know that " on time " attendance from this city is unlikely.
The train problems are reflected in increased traffic flow on the F6 expressway joining Wollongong and Sydney. Despite high petrol prices many workers prefer to drive to avoid the uncertainty of rail, particularly when their job is in western Sydney which would involve multiple train journeys.
Unemployment is falling steadily. All it would take to join the national average would be a decision to upgrade rail from third world to first world in this area !
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