Within a year Dubbo's unemployment rates have risen from two to nine percent and employment hubs are scrambling to help fix the issue.
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VERTO CEO Ron Maxwell, a born and bred Dubbo man said that unemployment rates in the Orana region have "always" been high compared to the rest of the state.
The unemployment rate in Dubbo sits at 3.9 percent whereas youth unemployment is considerably higher at 11.9 percent.
"It is much higher then what the overall unemployment rate is but that's fairly historic, people have barriers and there seems to be quite a few and that keeps them out of the workforce for longer," he said.
Mr Maxwell said there was a real issue with intergenerational unemployment in the region.
"There's no one reason for this, it's a mixture of things that come into play," he said.
When Mr Maxwell was working at Dubbo's Western College they ran a number of youth programs including Links to Learning for kids that were having difficulty at school or didn't fit in the traditional learning system.
"We do a lot of work with those guys, and the demand on that program just got higher and higher each year, with a higher proportion going into it," he said.
Some common factors he found were kids having a difficult home and family life which led to self esteem issues, which led to issues you have to deal with to prepare for work.
"This meant some kids stayed out of the work force for a year or so," he said.
"There's no quick fix and no one size fits all, especially when you look at the youth unemployment rate across Australia which is at 8.8 percent, so the Orana is disproportionally affected."
How businesses can help solve the issue
Offering young people traineeships, apprenticeships or entry level positions is one way that businesses can help young people who are in need of work.
"It's easy to get a job when you've got a job then it is when you don't have one," Mr Maxwell said.
"It's easier to develop and everyone has to start somewhere, plus it really helps their self esteem and to build up their skill levels and prepares them for the next thing."
The Dubbo region has seen an 8.4 percent increase of people going into a traineeship or apprenticeship.
"This is really encouraging, because they are an entry point for youth and a really critical employment mechanism for youth to start their careers," he said.
"We have seen that hairdressing is a big one in Dubbo but there's people going into electrical, vehicle maintenance, carpentry and landscaping."
Through a division of VERTO, Western College in Dubbo offers different training for people looking for entry level employment skills, including food safety training, getting your RSA and white card and more.
Hiring youth has its benefits
COVID-19 has played a big impact on how businesses operate in 2022 and while there are no restrictions currently, the lasting effects of the past few years remains.
"Some businesses might find they feel they aren't qualified or able to take on an apprentice or trainee but there are subsidies for businesses that are looking to do something like this," Mr Maxwell said.
Mr Maxwell said taking on a young person had many benefits for businesses.
"As an employer you can get wage subsidies and things to assist in employing youth and it helps the business with more hands on deck but it also gives young people a start and allows them to gain skills," he said.
While VERTO used to offer the Job Active program, they've now been successful in their new Workforce Australia contracts in the Dubbo region, leading to an expansion of their services.
"This program which starts on July 1, will work with young people and job seekers," he said.
"It will be a free service for employers looking at taking someone on in the Workforce Australia case load and someone who's unemployed and looking for work."