New research from a James Cook University scientist shows that energy poverty – being unable to afford to heat or cool your home – makes it harder to find work.
JCU Professor Riccardo Welters' new research in the journal Energy Research & Social Science provides insights into the complex challenges facing Australian jobseekers.
"Energy poverty is not being able to heat your home when you want, for financial reasons," Prof Welters said.
"Cutting back on energy is one of the last things people do. People are willing to go without a meal before cutting energy, which indicates that energy poverty is a really bad financial position for people to be in.
"It's not just a problem in the southern hemisphere, it's a worldwide problem even for wealthy countries."
Professor Welters used the Hilda survey of Australian households to determine the impacts of energy poverty on the likelihood of finding a job and how long it takes people to find a job.
"The Hilda survey started in 2001. There's about 15,000 people that have been interviewed every year since it started," Prof Welters said.
"What we found is that a person who reports energy poverty is likely to spend more hours looking for work … but it takes them longer to find a job, if at all.
"Over a 12-month period, they spend less time in work and they're less likely to have a job at the end of those 12 months."
He noted that energy poverty can lead to higher stress and increased mental health problems, which impacts on how effective the search for employment is.
"Although the intensity of the search goes up for those experiencing energy poverty, the actual outcome is worse, so that must mean that the job search quality is impacted," Prof Welters said.
"If you've got energy poverty and you're unemployed, that reduces your likelihood of finding employment, which is probably the way out of energy poverty. It's a chicken and egg situation."
Prof Welters says that improving employment outcomes for Australian's experiencing energy poverty is complex.
"Improving Australia's housing estate, so houses are more energy efficient, could be a potential solution," he said.
"Home ownership also matters, but that can be far out of reach for many unemployed.
"Government policy might be able to do something about a person's social capital … by helping the unemployed identify a cheaper energy supplier or assisting in identifying home improvements."
"If you have rich social capital, you're less likely to have energy poverty."
