Surging rents are exacerbating the chronic shortage of workers hitting Illawarra Shoalhaven businesses, costing the region $642 million in lost economic activity each year.
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Rising housing costs brought on by the pandemic has increased the struggle for businesses to get staff, as workers are essentially being priced out of an impossible rental market, according to new research released ahead of the federal Jobs and Skills Summit.
It comes as Illawarra leaders briefed parliamentarians on the challenges impacting businesses at a forum last week, including worker shortages - with Big Fat Smile CEO Jenni Hutchins sharing she was looking to fill 60 roles, about a tenth of the organisation's workforce.
The data was compiled by Everybody's Home ahead of the federal summit, and explored the connection between increased rents, low vacancy rates and unfilled positions
It found median rents in the Illawarra Shoalhaven had increased by 41.7 per cent, or $175 per week, since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic in March 2020.
The number of job vacancies in the region increased by 133 per cent, from 1,333 to 2,848, in the same time period.
Rental vacancies also more than halved from 2,479 since the start of the pandemic, to 1,147 in July 2022, the research found. This means for every three jobs, there was one available rental property.
Everybody's Home spokesperson, Kate Colvin, said while housing affordability has been a social crisis in regional communities for some time, it is now also an economic one.
"The inability to find a rental and eye watering rent increases for the few places available is deterring people from taking up jobs in regional communities," Ms Colvin said.
"Our completely lopsided housing system is choking off the economic potential of regional Australia.
"The connection between housing and jobs needs to be at the very top of the agenda for the employment summit next week."
Ms Colvin said the research highlighted the urgency for an additional 25,000 social and affordable housing dwellings in Australia.
"It would relieve serious pressure on our housing system and give regional communities the chance to flourish economically," she said.
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Grace Crivellaro
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
Court reporter for the Illawarra Mercury.
