Surprise drop in jobless rate

Posted to The Age (6/12/2012) on 6/12/2012 at 12:25 PM
Commenting on "Surprise drop in jobless rate

http://www.theage.com.au/business/the-economy/surprise-drop-in-jobless-rate-20121206-2awzn.html

No wonder people say statistics lies. If each full-time job is replaced by 5 part-timers, the actual scenario is negative not positive. The total earned by these 5 part-timers is far less than 1 full-time employee, because most part-timers are casual who are not entitled to sick leave, super, and other benefits.

Besides all the high profile business closure, more proof of economic slowdown is evident if you just walk down some suburban shopping strips, Dockland, shopping centres, and look up to some commercial buildings in the CBD. I would like to challenge such unrealistic optimism, and reliability of the mathematical model and definition of employment/unemployment rates.

Many real estate agents' representatives and TAFE teachers have fallen victims to the current debacle. Many casuals are never included in the calculations, and their rise and fall in numbers create distortion to the statistics. The number of volunteers has also increased for two reasons. First many retrenched or unemployed keep themselves sane by contributing their excessive spare time, and two these people hope to add something extra in their résumés to make them look more presentable instead of showing a period of absence in employment history.

Wake up all those in Canberra ivory tower; do something now before the next sand storm comes; you may not have the chance to pull your ostrich heads up that had been buried in it for those years.

Tale of two cities a happy story for inner suburbs

Posted to The Age (27/10/2012) on 27/10/2012 at 4:05AM
Commenting on "Tale of two cities a happy story for inner suburbs"
http://www.theage.com.au/business/property/tale-of-two-cities-a-happy-story-for-inner-suburbs-20121026-28b7t.htm

Whatever studies undertaken or predictions made for the next two decades cannot be trusted with a six-foot pole. Technology has changed and will continue to change the employment pattern to such unimaginable extent that even futurists and crystal-ball reading gypsies have problems foretelling what is ahead, even just for a decade.

In late 60's and early 70's, Carlton Association campaigned so hard to save Carlton, an inner suburb next to Melbourne CBD, from being declared as a slump. Brunswick and Richmond were not better off then.The houses were small, and many were not well lit.

Decentralisation moved the population to the outskirt of CBD, where factories were erected to produce cars, machineries, food processing, etc. By then footwear and clothing industries began to decline and eventually died after tariff was removed. Brick veneer homes were built and a generation of middle income class established. Decentralisation was so successful that the CBD went into a tail spin, and drastic efforts were made to lure people back.

Manufacturing and related industries employed a lot of people. Frankston and Dandenong were the new rich suburbs. Good time needs good money, and our labour cost could not compete with then backward developing countries. Very soon they were handed over "free" high-tech knowledge by the developed and advanced countries. Factories began to close, and set off a chain reaction up-stream and down-stream industries.

Online businesses will have the same impact on brick-and-mortar retail outlets. In addition, online education will produce the same fallout to the teaching sectors.

The question then is "where will employment be found?". Pessimistically speaking, CBD will no longer be the hub, and travelling to work in the CBD will be the thing of the past!

Economy sheds 27,000 jobs

Posted to The Age (12/7/12) on 12/7/12 at 12:34 PM
Commenting on "Economy sheds 27,000 jobs"
http://www.theage.com.au/business/economy-sheds-27000-jobs-20120712-21xf2.html

Many casual workers especially students, who work for cash-in-hand, have never been reported and therefore have not been counted in the statistics. Many of these jobs are now gone, but have not reflected in the unemployment rate.

If a full time job for an employed person is now turned into a part-time / casual position but taken up by 2 persons, the total hours in now reduced to only 2 paid hours, this in fact nonsensically reduced the unemployed by 1. If this involves three part-timers / casual, the unemployed figure is reduced by 2, and so on.

A lot of older people are keen and looking for employment, but they are the neglected one. In addition, many unemployed are suffering from depression and medically unfit to seek employment.

For goodness sake, don't kid the innocent public with all these mumbo-jumbo crap. The whole statistical calculation must be revamped so that the real pain and suffering are reflected, otherwise realistic and humane policies cannot be made or formulated.

Shares lower on Greece doubts

Posted to The Age (22/2/2012) on 22/2/2012 at 1:47 PM
Commenting on "Markets Live: Shares lower on Greece doubts"
http://www.theage.com.au/business/markets/markets-live-shares-lower-on-greece-doubts-20120222-1tmo0.html

Only bunnies believe Greece has such magical and mythical power to influence our stock market overnight!

Unlike, the Chinese God of Wealth who "is" obese (sign of prosperity) and has a smiling face, Plutus the Grecian mythological God was lame and blind!

If you lose your money by following the gypsy-style crystal-ball-reading analysts, I can visualise that you are a hopping mad blind Freddy!

ANZ recruiting in Philippines as local jobs axed (Part 2 of 2)

Posted to The Age (19/2/2012) on 19/2/2012 at 12:22 PM (Not published by Newspaper)
Commenting on “ANZ recruiting in Philippines as local jobs axed”
http://www.theage.com.au/national/anz-recruiting-in-philippines-as-local-jobs-axed-20120218-1tg3l.html

Just in case some readers are not familiar with the basic accounting equation, profit or loss of a business is equal to income minus costs and expenses. Salaries, wages and superannuation, office rental, utilities, etc are costs and expenses, and since with less people around, the costs and expenses will be drastically cut. The profit will increase even if the income remains unchanged.

Are these CEO’s that smart to come out with these strategies? No, many just spend company’s money to engage consultants to plot against their own people! If part of the CEO’s reward is based on performance, this is the simplest way to make more profit without increasing sales!

How can these people go to bed with a clear conscience every night?

End 2 of 2 Parts

ANZ recruiting in Philippines as local jobs axed (Part 1 of 2)

Posted to The Age (19/2/2012) on 19/2/2012 at 10:26 AM
Commenting on “ANZ recruiting in Philippines as local jobs axed”
http://www.theage.com.au/national/anz-recruiting-in-philippines-as-local-jobs-axed-20120218-1tg3l.html

Whose jobs will be axed next?

For any major restructuring of a large organisation, the axe always starts from the lower rung of the leader. As the number of workhorses diminishes, supervision and management roles of the middle management are reduced, and so will the positions.

Well, you guess it right; once the middle managers are gone, the senior managers will be the next in line. I have come across a very senior manager from an Asian country who strategized the restructuring of the Australian operation received the same treatment after he had executed professionally many of his fellow colleagues.

The saddest thing is the senior managers are too naïve to think that they have done a good job and will be rewarded accordingly. The only ones that reap the benefit will be the CEO and Directorates, who claim the credit of turning the bottom line to show healthy profit.

End 1 of 2 Parts