Just Water CEO Tony Falkenstein says job hunters failing to show

Tony Falkenstein, chief executive of Just Water, says he can't find enough workers to fill vacant positions. Photo / File

Regional Economic Development Minister Shane Jones is advocating a work-for-the-dole scheme, but Just Water chief executive Tony Falkenstein is having trouble getting people just to turn up for work.

Falkenstein told Newstalk ZB host Leighton Smith that he was paying above minimum wages but was having trouble attracting delivery people, when all that was needed by way of qualification was a driver licence "and a bit of muscle".

Just Water supplies water coolers, drinking water and filters for the home and office market.

"I'm ringing up very harassed because of this unemployed problem," Falkenstein told Smith.

"We just cannot get people to even turn up for jobs, let alone apply," he said.

"We've done student job search - nobody applies at all," he said.

"We pay above the minimum wage and we just can't get them here," he said.

Falkenstein said two people - aged under 30 - did not turn up for work today after accepting jobs at Just Water.

Jones said over the weekend that he wanted to get young unemployed people "off the couch" and into work.

A new programme called "Working for your Country", will be part of four new projects Jones will take to Cabinet in the coming weeks, he said on TVNZ1's Q+A.

Statistics NZ's latest data, released on November 1, showed the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate fell to 4.6 per cent in the September 2017 quarter, down from 4.8 per cent in the June 2017 quarter. This was the lowest unemployment rate since the December 2008 quarter, when it was 4.4 per cent.

In the September 2017 quarter, the unemployment rate for men was 4.1 per cent, the lowest rate since the September 2008 quarter, Stats NZ said.

By comparison, the unemployment rate for women was 5.3 per cent, up from 4.9 per cent in the previous quarter. The unemployment rate for Māori was 9.9 per cent, down from 10.6 per cent a year ago.