Global headwinds push Bendigo's jobs market into uncharted territory

The Bendigo region shed 320 full-time jobs in June, the steepest monthly decline since the pandemic, as global economic pressures combined with the Telstra outage to rattle local confidence. The Australian Bureau of Statistics data, released Tuesday, showed the Central Victoria unemployment rate ticked up to 4.8 percent, from 4.3 percent in May.

This matters because Bendigo is no longer a comfortable distance from global shocks. The city's economy, anchored by Bendigo and Adelaide Bank's headquarters on Lyttleton Terrace and a growing advanced manufacturing corridor along the Calder Highway, is directly exposed to the same forces that wiped $1.2 billion from Telstra's market value after last week's nationwide outage. Local payroll data from the Bendigo Employment Hub indicates that businesses along Mitchell Street and in the Epsom industrial estate are already freezing hiring.

Telstra's black eye hits home

The telecommunications giant's collapse on July 8, which knocked out mobile and data services for more than 10 hours, cost Bendigo businesses an estimated $2.8 million in lost trade, according to the Bendigo Chamber of Commerce. The outage also delayed a planned expansion at the Bendigo-based call centre operator Salmat, which had expected to add 45 new positions this quarter. Salmat's operations manager told the Bendigo Advertiser the outage 'eroded trust in digital infrastructure' and that clients are now demanding backup systems before signing new contracts.

On the ground, the fallout is visible. Cafes along View Street reported a 40 percent drop in lunchtime foot traffic during the outage. The Bendigo Trades Hall Council says three construction projects in the Strathdale area have been paused because contractors cannot get critical approvals without reliable internet. The Reserve Bank's decision to hold the cash rate at 4.35 percent on July 9 has further chilled business confidence, with local real estate agents reporting that homes in Kangaroo Flat are now taking an average of 54 days to sell, compared to 38 days in March.

What falling prices mean for workers

Falling home prices-median Bendigo house values dropped 3.2 percent in the June quarter to $632,000-are making it easier for first-time buyers to enter the market, but they are also squeezing construction employment. H. Troon Homes, based in Epsom, laid off eight apprentices last week after three new-home contracts fell through. 'The global inflation cycle has finally caught up with us,' Bendigo Business Council president Mary-Anne Lillicrap said in a statement. 'Every second shop in the CBD now has a 'help wanted' sign, but nobody is applying because the cost of living is too high.'

The Bendigo Health hospital on Barnard Street, the city's largest employer with 4,600 staff, reports a 15 percent vacancy rate across nursing and allied health roles. Meanwhile, the Bendigo Tech School on Mundy Street is retooling its curriculum to include modules on digital resilience, cybersecurity and alternative payment systems-skills that local businesses say are now critical after the Telstra outage exposed how dependent Bendigo is on a single provider.

Looking ahead, the Bendigo Employment Hub will host a free workshop on July 25 at the Ulumbarra Theatre to help small businesses develop contingency staffing plans. The event is already fully booked. For workers, the advice from local recruiters is blunt: update your skills, diversify your income streams and don't assume your current job is safe. In a city that prides itself on stability, the message is that global volatility is no longer a distant concept. It is parked on Mitchell Street.