Survive and Thrive: Life During the Economic Downturn in Australia

At present, according to the SMH Newspaper, the employment rate in Australia is 95.5 per cent. However with this being said, economists predict that this number will fall by a couple of percentage points over the course of 2009.

With the horror stories of 2008 of plummeting share prices, declining property markets and the possible bankruptcy of many of the worlds leading companies such as GM, Ford, Chrysler and the Leeman Brothers, the loss of another 2% of people from the Australian workforce doesn’t seem too bad. Put into perspective, however, this number presents a very different view to the problem. This seemingly small 2% would be the equivalent of more people loosing their jobs in 2009 than live in the whole of the northern territory. If this 2% prediction is correct, the official percentage of unemployment will rise to 6.4% which would account for 768,000 people. This would be the equivalent to closing down Hobart, Canberra and Darwin. When re-evaluating the effect of loosing an extra 2% of the Australian workforce it is in-fact a much larger issue than originally expected.

 

On the flip side of this grim news, however, are opportunities that present themselves to those individuals who manage to keep their jobs (survive). According to the SMH paper, managerial promotions are fast becoming open in the workforce leading to high chances of promotion for those able to survive in the workforce though 2009. This brings to mind the expression – ‘Survive and Thrive’.

 

Posted By Michael Campbell