Economic uncertainty, big mortgages add up to job security headache

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Mar 14, 2017

Economic uncertainty, big mortgages add up to job security headache

One third of Australian mortgage holders are worried about job security.

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Economic uncertainty and increasingly large mortgages are making many Australians worry about job security, according to a new survey commissioned by ALI Group.

The survey of 1,000 Australian mortgage holders showed that 36 per cent were worried about their job security. The number is 41 per cent among families with dependent children.

According to Roy Morgan data, it is estimated that 4.6 million Australians had a mortgage as at December 2016. At the same time, 1,186,000 Australians were unemployed.

Fourty-three per cent of singles with kids said job security was their top worry.

Part-time workers are most likely to feel the pressure of potentially being unable to meet mortgage repayments, with 42 per cent of part-time workers listing job security as the top concern, compared with 35 per cent of full-time workers.

Huy Truong, CEO of ALI Group, which provides loan protection insurance products, said the anxiety reflects the economic uncertainties in the economy.

“These findings come as Australia experiences continued structural changes in the economy, including continued job losses in low tech manufacturing, automotive and mining industries," he said.

"About 2.3 per cent of Australian workers become redundant due to corporate downsizing or closure," he said, "while further reports found that almost 40 per cent of jobs are at risk of being lost due to automation and computerisation by 2030. This figure is even higher in rural and regional areas, at 60 per cent."

Truong said structural changes in the economy means it can take a long time between losing a job and finding a new one.

"There are new jobs being created," he said, "particularly in growth industries like the personal services sector, but it takes some time for people to find new employment.”

“Given the ongoing industry shifts, I anticipate job changes and employment anxiety will continue to rise," predicted Truong, saying he expects the "anxiety" will begin to hit "consumer confidence".

The survey revealed that half of respondents have been concerned at least once about being made redundant by their employer. Among those aged under 30, 56 per cent had worried about being made redundant by their employer. Among those aged over 45 years, 67 per cent have been concerned about being made redundant.

Truong said ALI's own experience showed involuntary unemployment was a main cause for finacial hardship, with 69 per cent of total claims in recent years for involuntary unemployment.