EVERY business in Orange needs to take action to prepare for the future after 1400 job losses in the central west, according to the Business Enterprise Centre.
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Orange and Bathurst have been hit the hardest and businesses in both cities can no longer rely on residents to keep them afloat, CEO Bruce Buchanan believes.
He said it’s time businesses started marketing to a wider audience, getting a strong online presence and expanding the range of services they offer.
Along with Electrolux’s 544 lost jobs, 150 jobs will go at EDI Downer in Bathurst and 110 at Simplot. Centennial Coal will cut around 120 jobs, with the majority to come from Lithgow and Mudgee, while National Engineering in Young will lose 200 jobs.
Mr Buchanan said it could take anywhere from three months to two years for businesses to recover.
“It is impossible to tell, it depends on a range of things and how well they are prepared for what’s to come,” he said.
“It’s devastating for the central west as a whole and businesses need to target the wider NSW.”
Mr Buchanan said if the commodity prices rose and production at Cadia Valley Operations increased then the economy would not suffer such a big hit but if not, people who have been made redundant may have to leave town.
“At least they have time to prepare,” he said.
“The flow-on effect of these job losses is huge for businesses from suppliers to contractors and simply people just not spending money because of the loss of income.”
He said it was “incredibly” disappointing that the aforementioned job losses were announced about eight weeks before Christmas.
He said companies know their financial position at the beginning of the financial year in July and could have been more considerate in the timing of their announcements.