Brisbane jobs market booms while the regions suffer

QUEENSLAND’S job market has skewed dramatically with fulltime jobs in the regions at its lowest level in more than six years while Brisbane is booming.

QUEENSLAND’S job market has skewed dramatically with fulltime jobs in the regions at its lowest level in more than six years while Brisbane is booming.

The tourism sector is finally starting to pay dividends in Cairns but is losing its sting on the Gold Coast, which lost 12,600 jobs in the past year.

But the results have surprised economists because ­regional cities such as Mackay, which should still be suffering from the continued collapse of the mining industry, have reached the level regarded as full employment, which is 5 per cent or below.

The central Queensland mining centre has increased job numbers by 8600 in the past year with employment growth of almost 10 per cent and the number of people in the workforce increasing.

Conus economist Pete Faulkner said Mackay was coming off a weak base and trend employment was well below the level seen just two years ago when the rate was as low as 4 per cent.

He said the Gold Coast downturn could be the result of the end of major construction projects or a return to a more normal level.

The State Government’s jobs for the regions program has so far helped fund 547 jobs, while another 200 applications are in the system. It has a goal of supporting 8000 jobs.