MELTON’S unemployment woes continue to worsen, with new figures showing its jobless rate of 11.3 per cent is double the national level.
Department of Education, Employ-ment and Workplace Relations data reveals that at the end of March, 2812 people were unemployed in Melton – almost 400 more than a year before.
The national unemployment rate was 5.7 per cent.
Unemployment in Melton’s eastern corridor was 7.3 per cent.
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MatchWorks acting general manager Mark McCoy said there had been a noticeable increase of unemployment in Melton. “The Melton office has observed an increase in the number of people registering with the office who have previously worked in the manufacturing industries, including textile, clothing and footwear,” he said.
“It has also been observed that many people working in the retail industries are experiencing a reduction in their regular employment hours.”
Melton Labor MP Don Nardella said unemployed residents were often in contact with his office. ‘‘It’s time that the government developed a jobs and investment plan for the outer suburbs, whether it’s in Melton, Sunbury or Wyndham,’’ he said.
Phil Lewis, of the University of Canberra’s Centre for Labour Market Research, said the western suburbs of Melbourne and Sydney bore the brunt of unemployment.
“When the national unemployment rate goes up from 5.2 to 5.7, there’s an intuitive view that it’s affecting everybody, but it’s not,” he said.
“It’s concentrated on people in manufacturing and manual-type jobs, which are disappearing quite quickly.”
The figures showed 494 people were unemployed in Bacchus Marsh in March, a slight increase from 428 in March last year.
Ballan had 138 people unemployed in March, up from 127 last year.
— with Nick Toscano
