South Australia’s management of Covid-19 pandemic labelled ‘top of the class’ in new report
SA’s Covid efforts have outperformed the other states and left South Aussies in an enviable position on two key measures, a new report says.
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South Australia’s management of Covid-19 has been labelled “top of the class” compared to other states, with a new independent report revealing we have spent the least time in lockdown and recorded the most improved employment figures since the pandemic began.
As Sydney braces for an extended lockdown and other states recover from scares with the Delta variant, the SA business sector has hailed the state’s position as an opportunity to “set up our economy for the next decade”.
SA is the only mainland state to not experience a lockdown so far this year.
Beyond the national lockdown early in the pandemic, the community has spent only three additional days confined to their homes, in November.
More than 18 months since SA recorded its first cases of the virus, analysis released by market research company Roy Morgan says “South Australia has handled the pandemic better than any other state on the employment front”.
Unemployment estimates contained in the report reveal SA’s combined unemployment and underemployment figure dropped from 23.9 per cent in the last quarter of 2019 to 17.4 per cent in the second quarter of 2021.
Roy Morgan chief executive Michele Levine said, “South Australia’s management of COVID-19 has been top of the class”.
“The lesser reliance of South Australia on international tourism than other mainland states has also served the local economy well during a time when international borders have remained closed,” she said.
Ms Levine pointed to a separate study that shows people in the Adelaide CBD have moved around more than those in other capital cities for most of the pandemic – including every day of the past five months.
The unemployment estimates are based on nearly 19,000 interviews with Australians in the June quarter. NSW and Victoria recorded the lowest combined unemployment and underemployment rates, while SA’s total has dipped below the national average.
Figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics last month showed South Australia had the highest unemployment rate in the nation at 5.8 per cent.
Business SA chief executive Martin Haese said there was still work to be done but the state had reason for optimism.
“It is a time to be a bit opportunistic because the conditions are good in South Australia,” Mr Haese said.
“I think the imperative now is what are we going to do with that? How are we going to leverage off that in a very positive sense, to set up our economy for the next decade?”
Mr Haese said the strong performances throughout the pandemic presented opportunities to grow exports and drive population growth.
Premier Steven Marshall thanked the community for keeping the state safe and the economy strong, and said there were more South Australians employed now than at any other time in history.
“But we remain vigilant to ensure we maintain this enviable lifestyle,” he said.
SA recorded one new case on Sunday, a boy in a medi-hotel who was infected overseas.
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