Jay Weatherill: Shipbuilding announcement means that thousands of SA workers’ jobs are secure

YOUNG South Australians in high school and considering their careers now know that a high tech defence industry with long-term jobs awaits them in Adelaide.

ASC workers Glen Dallimore and Dave Coulthard have their future work secured. Picture: MATT LOXTON

YOUNG South Australians in high school and considering their careers now know that a high tech defence industry with long-term jobs awaits them in Adelaide.

Yesterday’s news that SA will build the first of the Offshore Patrol Vessels means more than just protecting shipbuilding jobs.

It means that Adelaide will be a centre for high-tech manufacturing for many decades.

Standing up for SA’s economic interests is how we get results. As a community we have stood together and fought strongly for a continuous shipbuilding industry and we should be very proud of what we have achieved.

It is a win for SA jobs at a time when our state needs a win. It is also a significant step forward in the transformation of SA’s economy, ensuring highly skilled manufacturing jobs are supporting many thousands of workers and their families.

In late 2014, the futures of thousands of workers were under a cloud as Australia contemplated an overseas build of submarines, we had no detail on Future Frigates and no commitment of the location of an Offshore Patrol Vessel build.

Since that time, the State Government has been working tirelessly, hand-in-hand with industry, unions and the community to advocate for a shipbuilding strategy that both delivers the desired defence outcomes and represents a long-term commitment to Australian industry.

The “stop-start” nature of shipbuilding in the past has meant that workers have lost their jobs between projects and go elsewhere to find work.

Not only is this approach bad for workers, but it is bad for productivity. That is why making Adelaide the centre of shipbuilding is the best result for our defence industry. A continuous ship build means that workers can have career certainty.

We welcome yesterday’s announcement and are proud to have stood up for SA workers, the industry that underpins the thousands of jobs and the many families who can now breathe easier.

We will be seeking a commitment of the announcement in writing, so all South Australians can go to the Federal Election with the knowledge that these promises will be delivered.

Of course, the final piece of the puzzle is the location of the all-important Future Submarines project.

We are calling on the federal Government to make this announcement ahead of the election, so that voters know where the subs will be built before they go to the polls.

From the SA Government’s standpoint, building 12 submarines in Adelaide – the home of high-tech defence shipbuilding – is the only real choice.

Jay Weatherill is the Premier of South Australia.