Ministry of Social Development Bay of Plenty regional commissioner Mike Bryant at Rotoua Central Mall. Photo / Andrew Warner
Ministry of Social Development Bay of Plenty regional commissioner Mike Bryant at Rotoua Central Mall. Photo / Andrew Warner
If you're shopping but really should be job hunting, from next week you can kill two birds with one stone.
The Ministry of Social Development's work services team will be working from a temporary job shop inside Rotorua Central Mall from Monday next week.
The job shop will open from10am to 4pm daily from March 1 to March 5.
It's the second time a job shop has operated from the mall and it is aimed at providing an innovative way of connecting with jobseekers and potential employers - so it's not just for those looking for jobs, but also for those who might be looking at hiring.
The ministry's Bay of Plenty regional commissioner Mike Bryant said jobs were out there and this was a good way of matching them to the right people.
Ministry of Social Development Bay of Plenty regional commissioner Mike Bryant at Rotoua Central Mall. Photo / Andrew Warner
"The job shop will promote those vacancies and will be a platform for people to talk to us about work. We're happy to discuss the labour market employment trends and opportunities with anyone who comes in."
Employment products and services will be promoted throughout the week, with a work broker on-site each day to talk about job opportunities.
Information about the ministry's contracted skills and training opportunities for jobseekers will also be available.
Bryant said business owners who might be looking at hiring could also call in and have a chat about how the ministry could support them with their recruitment needs.
"With the main kiwifruit harvest season kicking off in March, Covid-19 travel and border restrictions mean local people now have opportunities to take up seasonal work that they may not have considered previously."
Photo / Getty Images
He said there were currently 524 seasonal vacancies across the Bay of Plenty and many of those were open to Rotorua people.
"Many of our clients want to work and we're committed to doing everything we can to support them back into employment.
"Our vacancy listings change daily so we encourage jobseekers to pop down to the mall and check us out."
The latest labour force figures for the fourth quarter of 2020 show the Bay of Plenty has the third-equal highest unemployment rate in New Zealand at 5.6 per cent, on par with Northland.
The highest is Taranaki on 6.3 per cent followed by Gisborne/Hawke's Bay on 5.7 per cent.
