"There are more people competing for the same number of jobs in the market. We would never have enough roles for all the clients registered with us."
Mrs Scott said it was important those applying for jobs had their CVs up to scratch and urged them to consider temping roles "so at least you are getting into a company where you can then make contacts and pathways to permanent employment".
Love Soup Rotorua's Gina Peiffer said it was becoming "incredibly hard" for job seekers to secure work in Rotorua.
"Rotorua is traditionally a seasonal city with big employers in the tourism and hospitality sectors going down to skeleton staff for the winter season. This is a sector where a lot of people have the skills to work in but there are so few jobs.
"People are out there walking the streets, dropping their CV off day after day but there's just no jobs."
Daisy Ryan moved to Rotorua in August after living in a tent for six months in Hawke's Bay.
The mother of two, excited to finally be in a house, started to look for a job immediately.
But despite more than four years' experience in the retail industry, she is still looking nine months later.
"I've applied for four jobs just this week. I've been applying for retail jobs but I also have to consider care for my children, so have been applying for junior office roles which all came back saying I don't have the experience.
"Even if I could get a temp job - something to get my foot in the door and show I have some experience, it's that vicious cycle of you need experience to get the job but how can you get the experience if you don't get the job? It's hard not to lose hope."
She is completing a computer course at Te Wananga o Aotearoa and hopes it will help.
"It's a real struggle, especially when there are hundreds of applications for one job. It's made harder because now we also have people from Auckland wanting to live in the regions snapping up the jobs."
Rotorua woman Sara Schneller returned to her home town late last year after living in Perth for seven years.
She started looking for work in the sales industry about four months ago, but is yet to land employment.
"I am on Seek and Trade Me every day but there are so few jobs. It's hard not to get a little deflated, I'm just so ready to work.
"What's harder is I know I have the experience and I can do the job, but I'm just not getting the opportunities that those who have been working in the New Zealand market do."
As of yesterday there were 162 jobs listed on Seek for Rotorua, the most in trade and services (28) followed by retail (18) and hospitality and tourism (11). There were 214 jobs listed on Trade Me.
Ms Schneller said she was grateful she did not have to rush to find a job, being able to wait for a position she wants.
"Coming back home I think Rotorua is looking really good, there's more people around but the current job market is very hard to get into."
She thought a "who you know" culture, on top of the lack of jobs, was also contributing to the difficult market.
What Rotorua's politicians say:
Rotorua MP Todd McClay:
Quarterly changes that go against a longer-term trend of unemployment falling in the Bay of Plenty should be treated carefully.
Statistics NZ have said 6900 jobs were created in the Bay of Plenty over the last year which is what businesses are telling me. The local economy is strong and jobs continue to be created. We continue to experience higher growth than the countrywide average.
I expect this week's Budget to further invest in education to ensure that young people in Rotorua have the skills they need to access work opportunities. There should also be more funding to continue to meet infrastructure demands over the long term of a growing local economy.
Rotorua-based New Zealand First list MP Fletcher Tabuteau:
A lot of businesses are going gang busters in Rotorua, particularly in the tourism and hospitality industry, and that is great to see.
In one sense we have to celebrate the successes of those individuals who are doing well but we also need to recognise this is a small snapshot of the Rotorua market. We need to look at the quality of work available and the static wage rate in the region. Being employed can mean you are working one hour a week. If employment is 10 hours a week, that's not sustaining anyone.
Labour Rotorua candidate Ben Sandford:
Regional New Zealand is not a focus for Bill English, in my view, and these statistics paint a damning picture of neglect. Despite this, Rotorua is growing and new businesses are seeing the potential of our city, thanks to Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick's vision, our council, robust industry leaders and our community which supports our home-grown successes.
What we need now is a Labour-led Government to work in partnership with our community leaders on initiatives which will benefit from Labour's promised $200 million regional development fund, to create long-term sustainable employment, growth, and opportunity for all.
Labour Waiariki candidate Tamati Coffey:
Bay of Plenty unemployment rising to 7.6 per cent, despite the booms in Rotorua and Tauranga, is a clear indictment in my view that the MPs of the Waiariki are failing their own job descriptions and our people.
If under their watch, Mount Maunganui can't snatch Government attention away from Auckland where unemployment has dropped, what hope is there for the Kaweraus and Edgecumbes of our region, where high percentages of Maori live and employment opportunities are more limited?
Unemployment in the Waiariki is a reality that Labour will face head on. We will not settle when rising unemployment figures can easily share the same newspaper as droughts over a crippling lack of skilled trade workers within our region.
- Waiariki MP Te Ururoa Flavell was overseas and unavailable for comment.
Unemployment figures March 2017 quarter
Northland: Down 0.4 per cent to 8 per cent
Bay of Plenty: Up 2.9 per cent to 7.6 per cent
Gisborne/Hawke's Bay: Down 0.4 per cent to 7.6 per cent
Taranaki: Up 0.5 per cent to 6.3 per cent
National: Down 0.3 per cent to 4.9 per cent