Australians hard hit by paucity of jobs

MELBOURNE: This could not be the right time to migrate to the Kangaroo land if one is planning to have a future here, as the global financial crisis has left job seekers searching for opportunities.

Employment index of SEEK, a popular website for the job seekers, which measures the ratio of online job advertisements to applications, slid for the 12th consecutive month in November, falling 2.9 index points to 59.7 points.

The index was down 45.6 per cent from a year ago. SEEK employment managing director Joe Powell said jobseekers needed to develop skills and experience to be competitive in the tight labour market.

"During the Christmas break, it may be worth thinking about your options and the potential to develop yourself through further education or on-the-job-training," Powell said.

"Alternatively, if you're looking for a career change, you could start thinking strategically about transferring your skills to those areas in most demand," he said.

Advertisements for new jobs fell nationally for the sixth straight month in November, down four index points to 319.8, according to a report in 'The Age' today.

Ads for jobs fell 1.2 per cent across Australia in November, seasonally adjusted, with new ads in the mining-boom state Western Australia falling 5.2 per cent. The number of job applications placed with SEEK rose 3.3 per cent.