Nelson job market buoyant

Despite an economic downturn nationally, the Nelson job market is still buoyant, with employees continuing to struggle to fill some skilled roles, union representatives and personnel managers say.

Figures released from Work and Income show that at the end of June, there were 124 people in the region receiving the unemployment benefit, down from 212 last June.

Work and Income spokeswoman Jill Harris said figures for the current quarter had not been released but the downward trend of unemployment was continuing in August, although at a slower rate.

She said Work and Income was maintaining close links with major employers, given the economic climate.

Engineering, Manufacturing and Printing Union area coordinator George Hollinsworth said he wasn't aware of any market-driven redundancies in the Nelson region apart from the review going on at Fairfax media, which was affecting some positions at the Nelson Mail.

"Most of the industries we cover are searching for skilled employees."

Judy Fanselow, director of top-of-the-south professional recruitment company Fanselow Bell, said it had been a little quieter than last year, but she did not think it was reflecting the depth of the downturn as portrayed in the media.

However, some vacancies were attracting more applicants than they had previously, with one client attracting three times as many responses for the same job they advertised last year, she said.

Ms Fanselow said some positions they were recruiting for were new positions, and employers were still screaming for skilled workers like engineers, GIS, or geographic information system, workers and quantity surveyors.

Food and Service Workers Union national assistant secretary Neville Donaldson, who is based in Nelson, also said the industries his union dealt with in Nelson were stable and that some employers were still struggling to fill roles.

He said employers in the aquaculture industry in Marlborough were desperate for workers.

"With the industries we are involved in, there are still a lot more jobs than there are people to fill them."

Tempz Personnel company director Sue Gallagher said things were tracking along as expected at this time of the year.

Because the company specialised in industrial, construction and roading workers, winter was usually a quiet time of year for it, and the wet weather had affected things slightly. Work picked up in spring and the signs were they would be very busy in spring and summer, so they were increasing their pool of temps in preparation.

- © Fairfax NZ News