Qld jobs to grow as state emerges from Covid-19 pandemic

Jobseekers are being told to prepare for a major jobs boom ahead of the Christmas and summer holiday season, with hundreds of thousands up for grabs.

Jobseekers are being told to prepare for a major jobs boom ahead of the Christmas and summer holiday season, with Prime Minister Scott Morrison signalling confidence the nation’s economy was reopening for good.

Mr Morrison, in the ongoing move to frame the Government’s re-election campaign on economic recovery and the cost of living, has called on workers to take advantage of the expected rebound and fill vital roles.

In Queensland there are more than 46,700 live job advertisements, according to the latest data from the National Skills Commission, with tradies and administrative workers in hot demand.

The Sunshine State was also the only jurisdiction not coming out of a Covid-19 outbreak that logged an increase in job advertisements in October.

Trends based on Australian Bureau of Statistics data shows an extra 280,000 people could be in work before the end of the year.

New South Wales and Victoria, both emerging from prolonged lockdowns, will be the main drivers of Australia’s economic recovery in the next few months.

Queensland, which has so far avoided a Covid-19 catastrophe, could experience a modest uptick of nearly 6000 jobs by the end of the year, though this doesn’t factor in the impending return of international travel to the state.

Nationally nearly 300,000 more people could be in work by the end of the year.

The Prime Minister, underlining Australia’s low Covid-19 death rates, high vaccination coverage and “one of the strongest economic recoveries”, said businesses and the community should have “confidence” in the opportunities arriving this Christmas.

“We’ve seen what jobs growth can be achieved after lockdowns before, and with even fewer restrictions and the threat of lockdown fading, there’s never been a better time for businesses to hire as more people get out and about… this festive season,” he said.

“Australia is reopening safely and to secure our economic recovery we want to see more Australians in jobs this Christmas and summer.”

Federal Labor, against the backdrop of new wage growth data, countered the Prime Minister’s campaign rhetoric with criticism Aussies spending power was falling.

Shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers and his colleagues argued that while the cost of living, measured as the Consumer Price Index, had risen 3 per cent this year, wage growth had not kept pace growing by 2.2 per cent.

“Australian working families are falling behind because their costs of living are skyrocketing, while their real wages are going backwards,” he said.

Growth in recruitment activity has been strongest in regional areas although the majority of job advertisements were still concentrated in metropolitan areas, according to the National Skills Commission data.

In Queensland, a majority of job ads remain centred in Brisbane but growth has been most pronounced on the Sunshine Coast, with a 103 per cent increase in job advertisements compared to pre-pandemic levels.