By Alesha Capone
The west has recorded the highest unemployment rate in the Melbourne metropolitan region, according to a report from the Brotherhood of St Laurence.
The report, using data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, shows that Melbourne’s west which includes Werribee, Altona, Sunshine, St Albans, Footscray and Melton, recorded an unemployment rate of 14.8 per cent in January this year (compared to 18.7 per cent in January last year).
This added up to 3417 unemployed people aged between 15 and 24 in the west, not including those who were involved in full-time study.
Melbourne’s northwest placed second on the list, with a 13.3 per cent unemployment rate (1799 young people).
In comparison, the overall Victorian youth unemployment rate was 11.4 per cent.
In a statement last week to coincide with the report’s release, the Brotherhood of St Laurence said that the Australian youth unemployment rate was “stagnating at the levels seen in the early 2000s, despite 28 years of economic growth”.
The Brotherhood’s executive director, Conny Lenneberg, said that there was almost a quarter of a million young people unemployed nationwide.
“Young people come out of education and training with high hopes and aspirations for independence,” Ms Lenneberg said.
“It’s devastating that despite 28 years of continuous economic growth, too many young Australians are locked out of the prosperity dividend.”
