Labor has welcomed the improvement in the latest headline ABS jobs figures, but says the biggest impact is yet to come.
Shadow Treasurer David O’Byrne said in less than two weeks, many Tasmanians would lose access to the JobKeeper payment, as payment thresholds change.
“That’s not just bad news for workers, it’s bad news for the broader economy.
“At the moment, there’s billions of dollars coming into the state from JobKeeper and JobSeeker payments.
“We heard last month that 63,000 Tasmanians are receiving JobKeeper – that’s a massive segment of the Tasmanian workforce.
“It shows how vulnerable we are as a state to the Federal Liberal government walking away from Tasmanian jobs.
“Peter Gutwein must not sit back and rely on these figures to justify a hands off approach on the economy.
“He needs to focus instead – in the short term – on lobbying his Federal colleagues hard to ensure that JobKeeper remains available to the greatest number of businesses and workers where jobs continue to be at risk.
“The extension of JobKeeper will give the Tasmanian economy time to rebuild, given our current restrictions.
“As well, he must act now to ensure Tasmania’s youth unemployment rate does not continue to worsen.
“We know that young Tasmanians have been hit hard by the pandemic, and at 14.3% youth unemployment in Tasmania is well above the national average.
“The Liberals have no plan for jobs. Only to get Tasmanians back into jobs, and support those hardest hit by the pandemic.”
David O’Byrne MP
Shadow Treasurer
