If the Illawarra's economy is evolving, it hasn't yet found a place for Shane Szakacs.
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And the trouble is, Mr Szakacs, 39, is just the kind of job candidate this region is producing in numbers.
One of 80 workers laid off from MM Kembla at the start of the year, he has joined the ranks of former manufacturing workers trying to find work in the post-steel city of Wollongong.
But after going for "well over 200" jobs, he has found only bits and pieces - a couple of interviews and not many calls back.
Driven, articulate, fit, well presented, dedicated to this region and well informed, Mr Szakacs appears to be a top candidate for an employer.
'I’m one of the lucky ones, I walked away with money. A lot of people don’t. Those guys who are on casual, they don’t know what’s around the corner'
First he started with the jobs he wanted most, then moved down to the next tier, then the next.
He's gone for jobs as a production supervisor, plant operator, sales assistant and storeman. Customer service, construction labouring, fence building and pizza delivery have proved fruitless.
He has retrained to get the necessary tickets for a traffic controller and medium rigid truck driver, and he's on the waiting list to do other similar training. But there's been nothing going in construction, with many jobs seemingly going to Sydney contractors.
Mines are downsizing, requiring experienced hands only, even for fly-in, fly-out work.
Anyone who has spent any time going for jobs will know how it can wear you down. But this is not a sob story.
Mr Szakacs is upbeat, strongly motivated after six months looking for work. Not looking in the fill-out-the-dole-form-minimum-activity-test sense, but actively searching, sending in 10 applications every three days or so.
"That's just my character," he explained.
A former Wollongong Hawks fanatic and member of the "Rimtimidators" cheer squad, he has offered to volunteer for the Hawks while he has some time.
He has found some success with labour hire company Edmen, which has given him a week or two here, doing heritage restoration, cement production.
But with a family that includes two teenage children, his wife's part-time wage is not enough, and with the redundancy money starting to run low, it's starting to bite financially.
"Come Christmas, we won't be able to live off one wage," he said.
"We've tried our best to budget a redundancy but that's a mission in itself. Now we're looking at what we don't need to spend and what we do need to spend.
"I'm one of the lucky ones, I walked away with money. A lot of people don't. Those guys who are on casual, they don't know what's around the corner."
Mr Szakacs, from Flinders, worked at MM Kembla, or its previous forms, since he was 19. As a surfer he thought it would be great to work close to the beach, and he had no complaints for 20 years until the company slashed its workforce.
Mr Szakacs, and many others in his situation, blamed the continuing cuts to tariffs on imported copper products for the company's woes, and the eventual loss of his job.
Why buy it locally when there's a cheaper version available from overseas?
He is now looking at having to travel to Kellyville for a brickie's labourer job, but baulks at having to spend half his $100 pay packet each day on the petrol to get to and from the Hills district.
Out on the job search trail, Mr Szakacs finds he's coming across a lot of the same people, going for the same jobs, when only a few can succeed.
"We've all got the same skill set," he said.
"You go into a place, filling out applications, you see the look on their face. A bit of fear, trepidation, and maybe they're getting a bit worn down going through the process [for so long].
"You feel like giving them a pat on the back, but at the same time you say 'hang on, I've got to give myself a pat on the back'.
"There's just not a lot around."
Mr Szakacs is trying to see this as a opportunity to get into something new if he can't find work in a field he knows. A born talker, he knows there are jobs interacting with people that would suit.
"You've got to think outside the box," he said.
"I'd love to go to uni, I'd love to do a social services degree, or get a Certificate 3, Certificate 4, and basically be a case manager for DOCS. That would be my ideal job. I want to give back, I want to help people. But you can't just jump into that sort of stuff."
The study takes time. And with two teenage kids, his wife's part-time wage wouldn't be enough to pay the bills while he studies.
"The advice that I would give? I should have continually upskilled. I should have continually been doing tickets, TAFE courses, not rested on my laurels. That's the mistake I made."
If the Illawarra is shifting from being a steel town driven by manufacturing to a more knowledge and services-based economy, the shift cannot be regarded as a success if willing workers like Mr Szakacs slip through the cracks.
He sees the big picture, and wonders how long the slow times will last.
"I think and I hope it's temporary, because there are people out there trying to change the way things are done. We're definitely moving away from being a steel city, like Newcastle. Newcastle still needs a lot of work, but ... there is a lot of places up there that have moved on.
"Where the Illawarra's heading, I really don't know. It's one thing to beautify the mall, and put in some new shops and hotels, but people have got to have the money to spend to go there."
Employment co-ordinator cuts rile Bird
The Illawarra’s local employment co-ordinator won praise during her five years in the region, helping retrenched workers link up with new opportunities.
But as the Illawarra faces continued stress with its traditional employment base shrinking, Canberra has withdrawn its funding for her position.
The Abbott government’s first budget, delivered in May, sent the local employment co-ordinator into unemployment.
Employment project officer John Morris’s job was also cut.
All equivalent positions, in vulnerable areas nationwide, were no longer funded, with the money going to ‘‘fix the budget’’.
The decision angered Member for Cunningham, Sharon Bird.
‘‘It would be clear to most locals that there are still pressures on many industries in our region,’’ she said.
‘‘Only recently we have sadly seen local mining companies announcing new rounds of redundancies.
‘‘Our local employment co-ordinator would connect immediately with companies at the time of these announcements and propose plans to assist the displaced workers find new jobs or access needed training.
‘‘More than that, Jane [Robinson] and John worked with local branches of federal agencies to hold very successful jobs expos, giving an opportunity for local companies with jobs to come together with job seekers in one event.’’
Assistant Employment Minister Luke Hartsuyker told the Illawarra Mercury the positions were created by the previous government, and only funded until June 30 this year.
‘‘The Coalition government is committed to delivering a more efficient and effective employment services system,’’ Mr Hartsuyker said.
‘‘New Job Services Australia employment services contracts from July 1, 2015, will ensure funding is better targeted to deliver improved employment outcomes for job seekers.
‘‘As a result of the May 13 budget, a number of new payments are now being delivered. The government has introduced targeted incentives of up to $6500 for young job seekers through the Job Commitment Bonus.
‘‘The government has introduced increased subsidies of up to $10,000, for businesses that employ eligible mature-age job seekers, through the Restart program.’’