The Latest From The LA Wildfire & Is This The End Of Working From Home?

Published Jan 12, 2025, 6:54 PM

Despite being the middle of winter, fires have torn through large parts of Los Angeles.

From the thousands of homes destroyed to lives lost, we've got the latest information on everything to do with the unfolding disaster abroad. 

And as we all start returning to work after a summer break we're wondering if 2025 is the year working from home fades out? 

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CREDITS

Host: Claire Murphy

With thanks to: Cayla Dengate, Linkedin's Career Expert 

Executive Producer: Taylah Strano 

Audio Producers: Tegan Sadler 

You're listening to a Muma Mea podcast. Mumma Mea acknowledges the traditional owners of land and waters that this podcast is recorded on. Hi. I'm Claire Murphy. This is Mumma MIA's twice daily news podcast, The Quickie. Today we'll get you across the wildfires that continue to burn in LA, those who've lost their lives as they defended their homes, and why wildfire is burning in winter. And we'll also discuss the fact that seventy six percent of Australians are contemplating a job change this year. Are you one of them? We'll look into the trends that the workplace is promising in twenty twenty five, from tightening work from home rules and in demand careers and industries. We'll explore the reasons many Aussies are thinking of quitting and what your next career move might have in store for you. But First Years the Laters From the Cookie Newsroom, Monday, January thirteenth. The devastating wildfires that have destroyed large slaves of La continue to burn, with more than ten thousand buildings now lost. The fires which have hit the region and what should be the coolest month of winter have taken at least sixteen lives, with authorities expecting the death toll to rise. Thirteen people are currently listed as missing. The Palisades Fire, the largest of the Blazers, has consumed over eighty nine hundred hectares or nearly ninety square kilometers of neighborhoods and destroyed thousands of structures, making it potentially one of the most destructive fires in Los Angeles County's history. Currently, there are six fires burning simultaneously, including the Eaten Fire, which has scorched more than ten thousand acres, and the newly ignited Sunset Fire threatening the Hollywood Hills. Some of those who've lost their lives include sixty six year old Victor Shaw, who was found still holding his garden hose as he fought to save the home he shared with his sister, the home their parents had bought almost fifty five years ago. Sixty seven year old amputee Anthony Mitchell died sitting at the bedside of his son, who.

Had cerebral palsy.

They were waiting for an ambulance to come and get them. Eighty two year old Rodney Nickoson died in his bed after telling his daughter he thought it would be fine to wait it out. He didn't want to leave the home he'd bought in nineteen sixty eight, the home he'd raised his family in. Rleine Kelly told her granddaughter that she didn't want to evacuate because the fires had never reached her home in Olti dinner before the eighty three year old was found in the rubble by her son. Sam is an Aussie who's currently traveling in LA. She's staying at the Beverly Hills Hotel, which is now packed with people who've had to leave their homes in our.

Hotel and now there are a lot of families who have been displaced, so they've got the animals here, their suitcases and pretty much packed up their lives and they've come into the hotel and they're all sort of sitting around in the fire. There's people really quite upset and crying or you know, just relieved that they're out safe and with their families.

The fires are being fueled by Hurricane for Santa Anna winds, with gusts reaching up to one hundred miles per hour in some areas. Some on social media shared videos of trucks laying on their sides littering the local highways after the winds tip them over. Sam says, the winds have been tearing through the city for days.

On Tuesday, we were walking down the street. It was that windy. This is before all the fire had actually flared up. It was so windy it was quite difficult to walk like. It was really really windy, So you can imagine once the fire started it just went really quickly.

Sam sair, she also feels like she's been transported back to Australia at the end of twenty nineteen when we were facing the same situation.

Do you remember the bush fires we had in twenty nineteen? Very similar. There's ash falling from the sky. The air quality is very, very sick. People are walking around with face masks. I've never actually seen Los Angeles so quiet either. The streets are pretty quiet. Usually the traffic is horrendous. The last two days, the Ship Boulevard is empty, which is quite rare.

While wildfires typically peak between June and October, climate change has transformed California's fire season into a year round threat, the state's average temperature having risen by approximately one degree since nineteen eighty three. Key factors have also contributed to these unprecedented winter fires. The previous two winters brought unusually heavy rains to southern California, leading to extensive vegetation growth. This winter has been exceptionally dry, turning all that vegetation into perfect fire fuel. Los Angeles' urban landscape contains highly flammable materials, including wooden telephone poles and homes built with wood to withstand earthquakes. Finally, the powerful Santa Anna winds, which bring dried desert air from the east, have created perfect fire conditions. These winds, combined with record low rainfall, have created what the National Weather Service has described as about as bad as it gets in terms of fire weather. Firefighters, many of whom are prison in maids, who are working for between five and ten dollars a day to risk their lives fighting the blaze, face unprecedented challenges, including water shortages. Three three point eight million liter tanks in the Palisades area were exhausted by early Wednesday, with the area experiencing four times its normal water demand. Actor James Woods broke down while speaking to CNN after explaining how the stretched thin fire service nearly took the life of his ninety four year old neighbour. He rang another neighbor to check if he'd gotten out. Okaine found he'd been left behind.

Is that the doors open. There's nobody here. They said, look, just go behind the pantry. There's a little room. We can see him during the day. He likes to sit there because there's a garden. He went in and found him. He had been left alone, and it turned out the fire department made the new character leave, and you know, she just does what she was told. They said, we're coming back for him, got him out, and the house burned down about an hour later. He would have been a marrillo.

It was just There have been reports that recent funding carts have left the firefighting Service in La understaff, despite the need for them and a long wait list of people wanting to join, but California Governor Gavin Newsom posted that this was not true and that they had doubled the size of the fire fighting army, built the world's largest aerial firefighting fleet, and increased forest management since he took office. We have seen many people document their homes becoming fodder for the flames, including former hillstar Spencer Pratt, who watched his and wife hiding Montag's home be consumed by the flames.

Well, this isn't looking good. It's the first time I've seen the flames coming over, fires coming around the corner. Yikes, update, I'm watching our house burned down on the security cameras.

The reality for a lot of the non celebrity homeowners in the area is that they will lose everything, not just to the fire, but because insurance companies stopped covering those who owned property in the area due to it becoming so unpredictable in the fire season. This may be behind why so many people have refused to evacuate, knowing if they did, they'd be left homeless and with nothing if they did not stay to defend their properties. While many celebrities have been affected by these fires, many have also lent a hand. Harry and Meghan quietly served food to those who've been displaced. Many not recognize them as they wore face masks. Jennifer Ganna was also helping with food service, telling news crews that she'd also lost a friend to the fires. Jamie Lee Curtis has donated one point six million dollars, while hackstar Jean Smart has urged the TV networks who would have paid to broadcast the upcoming Hollywood Awards seasons to instead donate the money to the victims of the fires. With no rainfall forecast for at least the next week, firefighters continue their battle against what may become one of California's most costly and destructive fire events. Climate scientist Daniel Swain from UCLA says it's plausible the Palisades Fire in particular will become the costliest on record, largely due to the destruction of some of the world's most expensive homes. And while those wins have calmed over the weekend, the US National Weather Service is predicting they will again reach gas of up to one hundred and ten kilometers an hour early this week. Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Malala yusufsi has called on Muslim leaders not to legitimize the Taliban in Afghanistan, who she says have created a system of gender apartheid. Yusufsia stated that more than one hundred laws implemented by the Taliban are designed to strip away women's rights, masking their actions under the guise of cultural and religious justification, but she says there is nothing Islamic about this. President Joe Biden will talk with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Etnah, who soon to discuss a Gaza hostage and cease fire deal before he leaves office. US official Jake Sullivan told CNN that both Hamas and Israel were very close to reaching a deal to halt the fighting in Gaza and free the remaining ninety eight hostages still being held there, but that it was still to get across.

The finish line.

Counter Terrorism police have taken over the investigation of a vandalism attack on a Sydney synagogue, which saw swastikas sprayed across the front wall of the Newtown building. The perpetrators also ignited a clear liquid that burned out quickly. Luckily it did not take hold. Not only would it have destroyed the synagogue, but could have potentially put lives at risk with people asleep in neighboring homes. New South Wales Police Commissioner Karen Webb's calling on anyone who may have information to come forward, hoping to halt the recent rise in anti Semitic attacks. That's the latest from LA. Next week explore the world of work for the year ahead, as many of us wake up to alarms for the first time in twenty twenty five. Are you listening to this in the car on the way to work. Maybe you're getting ready to embark on your first day back for twenty twenty five and wondering what the office, warehouse or vineyard has in store for you this year. Look that winery mention will make sense later. I promise millions of ossis return to work today. That relaxation and party Christmas New Year break now over, with some facing a significant shift in their work arrangements for twenty twenty five. If you log into your LinkedIn account, you'll find yourself faced with many of your current or former colleagues changing their status to open for work as companies reevaluate their requirements for the year ahead and make some changes as to how they want their workforce to look for the next twelve months. For the very first time since a pandemic hit all the way back in twenty twenty. Yes, it's actually been five years that percentage of us working from home has dropped. It's now thirty six percent of the Aussie workforce, down from third twenty seven percent as more companies mandate full time back in the office. Amazon Australia last year told their staff they expected them to all be back at their desks five days a week starting January, tewod saying there were just too many advantages to ignore of them all being together in the same place. New South Wales public service employees are also back full time, but the state government saying working from home should no longer be taken for granted. Major banks, including NAB, say they now require senior staff to be present in the office five days a week, while Colmbank and A and Z say they now need stuff in person at least fifty percent of their working time. But some companies are bucking the trend. Spotify made it clear that their work from Anywhere policy that was established in twenty twenty one, where their employees can work full time from home or the office or a hybrid home office model, is here to stay. Spotify's chief human resources officer, Katrina Burg told Raconteur that you can't spend a lot of time hiring grown ups and then treat them like children. Whitman experts, though, say they expect more companies to ask employees to return to the office, saying many are finding it difficult to manage remote work arrangements and the creation of what's referred to as the two tier workforce, where some roles can be performed remotely while others can't. As for the workers who've been utilizing the work from home or hybrid model, they're concerned that a return to the office will be a blow to their mental health as they have to again navigate office politics, or will also see their free time shrink as they instead invested in commuting. Research shows some are considering resigning rather than returning to the office full time. Kayla Dngate is LinkedIn's career expert. Kayla, is it true that more companies will continue to phase out working from home this year?

You think, Oh, I don't want to say yes to that, because flexibility is so valuable to so many working Australiants, especially working parents. What I will say is that there's a bit of a pendulum swing going on, and during COVID nineteen there was a demand that everyone had to work from home and that flexibility did last for a long time, and for some professionals it's still you know, they have complete flexibility. Others they're being brought back into the office. And what I think will happen this year is that there will be a mix. So organizations that have a real talent shortage are probably going to be offering more flexibility because they'll be desperate to get that top talent no matter what I think. Also, you know, there is a lot of value to being in the office face to face, especially for young professionals or those that really crave that type of connection. What I think will see is a lot of hybrid roles where people are mandated to come into the office, but maybe only three days.

A week or so.

A lot of the companies that are saying bring people back to the office, they're saying that it's the collaborative thing that they're missing out on that they're finding it harder to have that real idea as sparks and those ways of thinking outside of the box. They're really missing that from having that collaborative thing of in the office. Whereas those who have those real hybrid models or flexible models like say Spotify for example, have seen major benefits like a lower attrition rate, less time to hire new staff, and it's actually increased the diversity of their workforce too. How do you weigh up what's more important to you as an employer.

Absolutely, so I feel like employers have a big decision to make here. Like you say, sometimes in person, you have those conversations that are so valuable that you wouldn't have even thought to reach out to that person to ask, you know, what do you know about this project that I'm working on. Being in the office can be really valuable. But at the same time, like you say, there's some really good data that shows that while working from home, you know, there's a higher diversity of people who can engage in the workforce, like working parents, like people in regional areas, people with a disability that makes it difficult to come into a physical office. So there's benefits to both really, and I think if you're an employer, you've got to figure out what your staff want. You know, it's about talking to your team and seeing what's right for them.

We've seen some data that suggests that as high as seventy six percent of ossies are considering a career change this year. Do you think that maybe this push to have people go back to the office might be playing a role in that, because we've got a taste of that flexibility and some people are going to be very unwilling to let that go absolutely.

I think that when you look at the reasons why people want to get a new job, it's often either chasing a higher salary or chasing better flexibility or a role that really aligns with your personal values. I think if we just drill down on that flexibility thing, if you're someone who's been brought back into the office, that's your choice. If you don't want to go into the office, your choice is to find a job elsewhere. I think it's also a good time in the sort of larger scale timeline to be looking for a job because we've got a certain amount of comfort and back to the norm after the pandemic. It's sort of a bit of a time when people have the headspace to think, is this a career that aligns with my values? Is there something else I could be doing that would snap my heart alight and give me more value day to day?

Where are we at in the jobs market, Kayla? Because this last year in twenty twenty four, it was all about finding staff that people were struggling to get people. Is that still the case.

It's a real patchwork.

So there's still industries that have serious staff shortages and are really struggling just trying to get people on board. But at the same time we're also seeing industries that are feeling a little bit more comfortable, you know, kind of back to normal.

So it's a real patchwork depending on your industry.

It's that time where whatever area you work in, whether you're a hairdresser or a cybersecurity analyst, it's about talking to people and networking and see what they're experiencing in your patch of the world and in your industry.

The start of a new year also has us questioning whether we want to do the same thing we did last year, or whether it's time for a change. As we mentioned at the top of today show, seventy six percent of Australians are currently considering a career change in twenty twenty five. Perhaps there's an opportunity to try something new, but what to choose. According to Ranstad, the number one job in demand for twenty twenty five is no surprise considering this area exploded in twenty twenty four, and that is artificial intelligence specialists. They say, those who can design networks and develop algorithms to optimize systems for industries such as healthcare, finance, and retail will be in high demand. Data professionals are a close second on the list. Their role pivotal for businesses looking to harness the data they have access to to optimize their business strategy. Employees here are looking for those with skills in using data visualization tools like Tableau and powerbi. If you can program using languages like SQL and R, then that is a bonus. Cybersecurity specialists round out the Ranstad top three as businesses look to safeguard their digital infrastructure. Cyber attacks are becoming more frequent and more sophisticated, so having someone who can respond to a breach and have in place security measures to try and thwart for ten attacks is in high demand. Industries like government, finance, and healthcare are also looking for people who can bring ethical hacking, risk management, and cloud security to the workplace. So what industries does Kayla think will be in high demand in twenty twenty five. LinkedIn released their top five fast growing jobs in Australia recently, and one of them will finally explain that Vineyard mentioned at the top of the show.

It's interesting to see the jobs that are on the rise right now. So LinkedIn recently did some research about what are the roles that have been growing over the last three years, So not just the quick hit who's hiring a lot now, but roles that have those staying power. And the thing we found is that the roles are the real kind of human to human skill based roles, you know, roles that work on things like communication, empathy, adaptability. So we're talking English teacher, server at a restaurant, a travel specialist, a somelia, a fundraising manager, you know, people in HR and more. So it's really interesting to see.

That those are the roles that are growing at the moment.

Do you think any of those roles are geared for people who would prefer to work from home?

It's really interesting.

So we were able to pull the data on some of these roles about how many roles offered a hybrid and a few examples here, Travel specialist sixty nine percent of roles offered a hybrid at the moment. Fundraising manager is fifty five percent hybrid, Employee relations specialist is fifty percent hybrid. So, you know, we've pulled some of that research to show that quite a lot of these growing roles are you know, sitting at about half and half are offering hybrid positions.

So if you're someone who's looking for a new job.

And you don't want to be in the office every single day of the week, then maybe, you know, sorting through this and finding those hybrid roles is what's going to be best.

For you if maybe not looking drilling down into the actual roles. What are the industries that require the most stuff?

Right now, Hospitality is having a real boom, and I think this is a return to people having a little bit more disposable income, wanting to go out, wanting to experience things, you know, despite the cost of living. We are seeing that people they want to get out there, and hospitality is responding by you know, putting on staff and kind of returning to those pre pandemic times. So you know, we've got roles like server but also familiar there.

Another industry that's.

Really kind of growing at the moment is what I would call hands on tech.

So it's not so much those AI focused roles.

It's more like electrical design engineer, audio visual technician kind of roles like that development engineer where you're in tech, but it's also quite hands on.

That's because all of us are making podcasts now Kayler. That's why we need audio visual technicians.

To help us A Kaylor.

Is there a role in Australia that just like literally cannot be filled. I know, I see headlines all the time like offering twenty million dollars salary, but no one wants this job. Kind of vibe like, is there jobs in Australia that they are really struggling to find people to do.

I would love to find that one role that pays excellently and anyone could work in. I think the closest that we have is the Australian Government's Skilled Occupation List, which is basically vitas are available for people who are willing to work in these roles and come to Australia. And it is pages and pages and pages long, which gives you an idea of where those kind of skill shortages are if I pull it up, and where you know we're starting in a We've got accommodation and hospitality managers right up the front. We've also got accountants, actor is there, actors, dancers and other entertainers actuaries. So I think what this shows is that there's skills shortages biting across Australia and in terms of what is that role that pays amazingly and people are desperate for.

Maybe that's a role we need to invent.

You know, maybe some clever person listening has an incredible startup idea or a service that isn't quite offered.

Maybe that's one of those jobs of the future that we need to create.

Thanks for taking the time to feed your mind with us today. The quickie is produced by me Claire Murphy and our executive producer Taylor Strano, with audio production Tea In Saidlock