The news is good for Southland's young people as they search out employment opportunities in their home patch, but in order to survive and succeed in a competitive market they will have to upskill.
A new report from the Department of Labour shows Southland's youth employment rate (15 to 24 years), at 66%, is about 9% higher than the national average, and has grown faster than the national rate between 2001 and 2006.
More than a third of these youth were employed in the accommodation, cafe and restaurant industry in Southland in 2006, with over a quarter working in retail.
Labour Market Knowledge Manager for Southland and Otago Paul Crack said the in-depth report for Southland holds key youth labour market information, based on the most up-to-date data available for the region; Invercargill City, Southland and Gore districts.
"This fine breakdown at the district or city level makes this information very useful for local authority's efforts to build skills and employment at a local level," Mr Crack said.
"The Mayors' Taskforce for Jobs was consulted as we prepared these reports, and has welcomed these reports, and has welcomed the release of the detailed data in them."
He said there was no doubt young people were a significant asset to the economy.
"The short answer is that they are extremely valuable.
"We're talking first of all about a lot of people working and secondly about the future of Southland.
"We are absolutely dependent on these young people coming through in numbers, staying in the region, and coming to the region. Not only bringing themselves but a whole skill set with them."
While the youth population is projected to decline by almost a quarter by 2031, the rate at which young people were leaving the region has slowed, he said.
"Boy that's really good news and there's a couple of comments or observations we can make.
"Firstly, the SIT is very important and secondly, there's good work in Southland, no question at all.
"Young people don't have to leave Southland to get work and that's a real compliment to a lot of employers and a lot of people that have put capital into setting up businesses.
"There's a lot of good stuff happening in Southland and we expect there won't be any less of it into the future."
Finishing school at a younger age to enter full-time employment could often be a stepping stone to future positions of seniority in that company, Mr Crack said.
"Extraordinarily so. There are many many successes of young people who have done just that.
"There's a high percentage going from school into work and the employers appreciate that."
Therein lay a challenge, he said, with upskilling of crucial importance.
"Young people must not stop working. They've got to keep up in work training and take advantage of tertiary education opportunities because there are some opportunities coming up that require higher levels of skills."
The 12 regional Department of Labour reports focus primarily on data from the 2006 Census, the most recent results of the Household Labour Force Survey, Linked Employer Employee Data and the School Leaver Survey.
They combine qualitative and quantitative information, based on data analysis supplemented with regionally-based content provided by the Department's Labour Market Knowledge Managers.
