UNEMPLOYMENT IN AUSTRALIA

QUESTION

In preparation for Assignment 3, groups of students (5 people per group) select one of the following topics as the

focus for preparing a Community Case Study. Individual students then produce Assignment 2, a ‘Literature Review’

on this topic from the perspective of their chosen professional field, their ‘disciplinary perspective’. Topics from

which your group can choose are:

• alcohol related problems

• unemployment

• graffiti or other forms of vandalism of public property

• cooperative sharing of community resources

• public transport

There will be a selection of readings related to each of these topics on the Unit’s pages.

A literature review is used to determine what is already known and has previously been written on a topic. It will

assist to identify key issues related to a particular topic, and any concepts or theories that help explain particular

behaviours, phenomena or processes. In this instance the issue that you will explore is the one your group is

investigating in Assignment 3 as the focus of your group field work.

Your Literature Review will include at least 3 additional sources to those supplied on the Unit’s pages –

journal articles, text books, reports and web based materials – with information relevant to this issue and will:

1. Outline the topic/issue your group is investigating and explain the particular perspective that you are

considering; e.g. social policy, planning, tourism management, crime, social justice, development

2. Define any terms or key concepts

3. Identify what research in this area has already been undertaken on the topic and point out gaps in

knowledge

4. Critically consider what debates exist and different points of view from within the particular disciplinary

perspective

5. Establish your point of view

6. Explain how this existing information will inform the work you are undertaking as a group. What if any

policies, guidelines or regulations might exist that affect everyday life and the work of people, and the

organisations within communities; and

7. How the information you have read (both from within Australia and overseas), helps to better understand

the topic/issue in the community context your group has chosen and what possible approaches are

suggested through your literature review in working toward a civil, harmonious and socially acceptable

future as it relates to the chosen topic?

It is not necessary to discuss the particular place (the specific town, suburb, locality or precinct) where your group is

undertaking your investigation, although you may discuss the kind of place or context (city, suburban, peri‐urban,

rural), and the categories of stakeholders who have a ‘stake’ in the topic/issue your group has chosen, e.g. graffiti as

an issue for tourism might consider how it impacts on local residents, the local tourism businesses, local government

and the visitor. The detail about the particular place your group is investigating will be part of the Group Report (Assignment 3).

SOLUTION

Unemployment in Australia is seen to be revolving around five to seven percent in recent few years which is very low and is a good sign as Australia is a developed country but if unemployment is Australia is seen from a different perspective, we may find a deep thinking issue relating to youth unemployment. Unemployed people live a downtrodden life and are considered as threat to growth of economy and among all unemployed people, youth unemployment has grown up to big figures thereby catching the eyes of people for research and review. The unemployed youth is characterized by problems like low socio economic background, have left school early, have low level of literacy, are from rural background or are indigenous. The social pattern seen is that unemployed people have children of low literacy and therefore future unemployment risks increase, economy can get threatened by unemployed youth as they may become unemployed parents and adults thereby creating issues of increased poverty and economy stress in future. [Muir et al, 2003]

Unemployment means condition of joblessness in an economy and is measured in terms of employment rate which is number of unemployed persons divided by total number of civilian labor force.  The history of unemployment is the history of industrialization which is directly proportional to it.  The major reasons for unemployment are over population, low literacy, financially weak families and many other such reasons. [Geofred, 2012]

The researches already conducted show that youth unemployment is 21% in age group of 15-19 years in 2003, around 45 % of youth are either unemployed or are uneducated or fall in low education group.  Commonwealth government overseas has taken many steps to overcome youth unemployment as a seriously rising issue.  In order to promote youth employment, following things were taken seriously for considerations: well being of the youth and the family of underdeveloped and financially weak people, provide transitional support and help for bridging the gaps, increased education and training,  ensuring sustainability, having positive outcomes like program evaluations, providing support services to the downtrodden so that motivation could be reached for employment and awareness.

Debates on such issues have been a common phenomenon and people like scholars and thinkers have been commenting on the phenomenon that unemployment of the youth is just a hypothetical condition and the scale of unemployment is very low on the same time, people argue that Australia has seen recent major developments in the field of high prosperity. Low inflation rates, high labor productivity and increased legislations on labor welfare.  Australian youth are dominated by part time and flexible job cultures and are less likely to get involved in full time job. Another viewpoint says that it is not merely the condition of Australia but the whole world especially the western countries where youth are subject to unemployment on a large scale. It is also noticed that adult unemployment has almost halved during recent four to give years and this figure shows that statistical data is also indicating that unemployment is getting eradicated on fast level from developed countries and if adult unemployment is being removed then youth unemployment will also get reduced with the necessary steps being taken by the international institutions and the government. However the government focus should rather shift on issues like transformations from part time to full time labor, flexible jobs to fixed time scheduling jobs and also transformations from vocational education to proper academic education as is compulsory in USA. [Tomlinson, 2001]

The reasons for unemployment as discussed by past researchers is shrinking job market, shrinking job market is an outcome of globalization where unemployment has been seen as a result of concept of outsourcing, third party work done by other countries and liberal trade practices

Part time work and part time education like vocational courses, IT trainings, short term crash courses on mobile repairs, hardware repairs, software development, technical flaws etc have demolished the fear of under education or no education. Youth part time education is a very common phenomenon nowadays which should be resolved because it is a threat to the integrity of the country’s educated crowd. Another good reason pointed out is that turnover of youth employees is more as compared to adult employees, youth are more prone to job changes and it leads to unemployment or temporary unemployment. Education is another important factor influencing employment ratio, education is highly vocational, part time or left by the students in early ages for earning money but that earning of money gets limited to certain small period making the student unemployed for long.

My viewpoint on the condition of unemployment in Australia is that it can be eradicated if certain motivational encouragements are done by the management and the government on education, employment type, minimum qualification to be held and similar parameters.  The condition of unemployment is surely crucial as we cannot see unemployment from point of view of adult employment but youth means the future of any country therefore, I believe unemployment in youth must be tried to get eradicated completely as it may hamper the future of the country. Unemployment is emerging defect and it will continue if the ground realty cannot be traced and rectified, the ground realties stand for the basic errors or mistakes in the functioning of the country which is leading to such loopholes for such a developed economy. With the help of these parameters unemployment in youth can be eradicated although it is a matter of concern on a very large scale as unemployment is proportional to outsourcing concept and private sector cannot be forced for getting indigenous workforce but the government aided organizations and public sectors can be motivated and private sectors can be bounded that only a certain percentage of workforce can be outsourced, rest has to be native country students. Such encouragements can bring desired outcomes. [Richardson]

The existing data and information give us enough insight into the realities of the corporate world in western countries and in terms of Australia youth unemployment is emerging due to education, poverty and outsourcing disorders. With the help of these data, research can be carried out to find out the best suited methods of eradicating such a problem on large scale. Some polices and guidelines must exist which could do betterment of the country’s employment ration in terms of youth and that can be done by means of creating restrictions on outsourcing, making primary and secondary education compulsory for all students or citizens, free education campaigns or night education campaigns for working children or youth.

The information read by me made me better understand the concept of unemployment in Australia and other developed countries of the world. It may seem from distance that developed countries have better economy and no employment issues as overall unemployment in Australia is only four to five percent but when seen from microscopic eyes, it was seen that a major problem exists and it can only be eradicated if the core reasons could be rectified and the effect of globalization, liberalization and privatization has given negative impacts on nation’s employment system as well. This analysis helps us understand the real existing condition in the economy of Australian nation and also the world economies.  The issue is a seriously growing issue but is hidden in the eyes of the government about its seriousness and it should be aggressively followed and campaigning must be done so that it could be easily found and people must be made aware about the consequences they may face in future. The ignorance of the people and the youth on such a grim topic has to be eradicated and people of the nation and the world where the problem prevails have to be made aware and alert on the rising difficulties in the future. [Maurer et al, 2003]

Thus it can be said that Australia is a developed nation and like all other western countries has very little percentage of unemployment if seen from bare eyes, the real situation has been aroused in this essay that youth unemployment is serious issue which has grown in current times and advent of which can create many long term problems for the economy of the country. Problems like education, part time job, flexible nature of job, turnover of youth employees and many other issues as discussed above are giving birth to a very big problem named youth unemployment and youth unemployment can become complete unemployment in future as it is hampering the ration of educated and where students who could be put to full time permanent natured job in corporate world. The analysis explained that it needs to be eradicated with mutual efforts from international institutions and the government of indigenous nations so that youth unemployment could be fuly removed and youth become the strong future of all developed and developing nations thereby making the world economy highly competent and fully fledged. With the help of this research, many sensitive and crucial facts about the real condition of unemployment in Australia came into focus and initiave for its betterment must be taken so that Australia and economic development always sees rising figures.

References:

1. Kristy Muir, Anne Maguire, Daniel Slack-Smith & Maree Murray, 2003, youth unemployment in Australia, viewed on 10^th may, 2012, <http://www.thesmithfamily.com.au/webdata/resources/files/youth_unemployment_amp_report_november03.pdf>
2. Geofred, what is unemployment, viewed on 10^th may, 2012, < http://www.stlouisfed.org/education_resources/assets/lesson_plans/GeoFREDUnemployment.pdf>
3. John Tomlinson, 2001, basic solution to unemployment, Australian journal of social issues, vol-36, no-3, page- 237-248, viewed on 10^th may, 2012, < http://www.basicincome.qut.edu.au/documents/ajsi_basic_solutionrft.pdf>
4. Sue Richardson, unemployment in Australia, academy os social sciences in Australia, viewed on 10^th may, 2012, < http://www.youth.infoxchange.net.au/news/items/2006/03/71118-upload-00001.pdf>
5. Gertrud Auf Der mauer, astride Hollander, Joann hu huifen, Karen dawn hunter, Stella, isenbügel, Melissa kohonick, Natalia matveeva, Jordan Wolfe, 2003, youth unemployment, UNESCO, viewed on 10^th may, 2012, < http://www.unevoc.unesco.org/fileadmin/user_upload/pubs/AB3_YouthUnemployment.pdf>

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