Luke Howarth (Petrie, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Youth and Employment Services) Share this | Hansard source

According to psychology professor David Blustein, studies show that when people lose their jobs there is an increase in mental health problems, and, when they're re-employed, those problems decrease. It's actually the same with homelessness—the same study shows the same thing. If a person is unemployed for a period of six months, they feel the same level of grief as they would because of a bereavement.

Jobseeker boot camps, which I started back in 2014, are an employment initiative I have been running in Petrie for a while now. I bring together local employers who are responsible for hiring and motivated jobseekers in a welcoming and honest environment. I have two boot camps coming up: one on 31 March at the Hog's Breath Cafe at Mango Hill Market Place and one on 5 May at Bracken Ridge Plaza. Coffee Club franchisee Jeanine Berry and Glenn Cullen, from All American Drive Line and Auto Parts, at Clontarf, will be there talking straight about what they look for when hiring. The Mango Hill Coles manager will explain Coles' new online recruitment. SANDBAG, which is the Sandgate and Bracken Ridge Action Group, will discuss some low-skilled opportunities for work with social enterprises. And we will have Kylie Chown, a social media guru, to talk about how important your online reputation is when looking for work. Because more and more job interviews are being done online, with Teams and so forth, people need to think about their backdrop—what's behind them when they're being interviewed online—and the clothes they wear. Exercise sociologist Samantha Morris and psychologist Eloise Gibson of MAX Solutions are two women—great women—I recently met at MAX Solutions, Kippa-Ring. At the Bracken Ridge boot camp, they'll be discussing how essential it is to be physically and mentally prepared for the jobseeking journey, which, as you probably know, Mr Deputy Speaker, can be disheartening at times if you get knocked back. You have to keep your mental health fitness on track for the challenge.

Work and jobs have dramatically changed. I remember my first job at Toombul Music, when I was first employed. Since then, the way things are done has changed, but there are some things that remain the same—things like relationships, who you know. The first job I got was through my uncle. He introduced me to Barry Bull, the owner of Toombul Music. Communication is important, as are good presentation, and preparation around what to wear, backdrops—as I said—and a little bit of information on the company.

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