Australia – Casual workers bear brunt of Covid job losses

Casual workers accounted for approximately two-thirds of people who lost a job during the beginning part of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported today.

“Total employment fell from around 13 million to 12.2 million between February and May 2020, with two-thirds of the fall...

Asia Pacific – HR tech firm, video interviewing provider and talent platform announce funding: Tech roundup

Several Asia-Pacific firms announced funding rounds. HR tech platform HiBob Inc. announced a USD 70 million funding round while video interviewing platform myInterview announced a USD 5 million seed funding round. Meanwhile, Indian talent platform Awign announced an undisclosed funding round.

HiBob

HiBob...

World – Apple accused of allowing suppliers to violate labour law by overusing dispatched workers

Apple has been accused of ignoring its suppliers’ violations of Chinese labour laws.

According to The Verge which cited a report from digital media company The Information (paywall), Apple's suppliers have periodically filled their factories with temporary workers or “dispatch workers”,...

Australia – Job ads slip 3.3%: ANZ Bank

Job advertisements in Australia fell by 3.3% in November 2020 on a seasonally adjusted basis when compared to November 2019, according to data from ANZ Bank.

ANZ Bank’s data is based on information provided by the operators of the following sites: Seek.com.au, and the Department of Education, Skills...

Australia – Less people working multiple jobs in Q3 than last year, study finds

The number of multiple job holders in Australia (people who work more than one job at the same time) fell by 9.7% in the September quarter of 2020 when compared to the same period last year, according to data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

When compared to the previous quarter, the number of...

China – Majority of enterprises recruit more graduates despite pandemic (Xinhua)

About 58% of enterprises in China this year expanded their enrollment of college and university graduates despite the impact of the Covid-19 epidemic, reports Xinhua citing a report from job board Zhaopin and the Center for Social Research of Peking University.  Approximately 74% of surveyed companies...

Australia – Majority of casual workers likely not paid casual rates, report finds

More than half of casual workers in Australia probably do not receive the legal 25% casual loading in their pay according to a new report by Griffith University professor of employment relations David Peetz.

The report, ‘What do the data on casuals really mean?’, outlines the ways casual jobs allow...

World – OECD unemployment rate falls slightly to 7.1% in October

The unemployment rate in the OECD area (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development) continued to decline in October 2020, to 7.1%, from 7.3% in September, but remained about 2.0% above the level observed in February, before the Covid-19 pandemic hit the labour market.

The unemployment...

Taiwan – Airswift announces joint venture with Take5People, expanding offshore wind footprint

Airswift, the global workforce solutions provider for the energy sector, announced a new joint venture in Taiwan with HR and payroll software solution provider Take5People.

The partnership will allow Airswift to expand its presence in Asia and continue to diversify its business into the renewables sector....

Australia – Family of deceased Uber Eats rider files workers’ compensation claim in test for gig economy (The Guardian)

The family of an Uber Eats rider has filed a workers’ compensation claim over his death, in what could become a landmark case for the gig economy, reports The Guardian. Five delivery riders have died in Australia since the end of September. Dede Fredy, a 36-year-old Uber Eats worker from Indonesia,...