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Trade and Investment Strategy to support regional jobs Treasurer and Minister for Trade and Investment Curtis Pitt says the Palaszczuk Government’s new Trade and Investment Strategy will help drive local employment opportunities in regional Queensland. Speaking in Townsville for a North Queensland launch of the $35 million Advancing Trade and Investment – Queensland Trade and Investment Strategy 2017-2022, Mr Pitt said the strategy was a crucial part of the government’s economic plan. “Like our economic plan, the new strategy has a strong regional focus, particularly when it comes to opportunities in the north of our state and across Northern Australia,” Mr Pitt said. “Regional Queensland export businesses – and the many other firms in their supply chains – will benefit from a strategy that highlights the need to build and innovate from traditional industries like mining, agriculture, tourism and education, and expand up-and-coming sectors like renewables, biofutures, aerospace and advanced manufacturing.” Mr Pitt said the latest ABS figures for regional and regional youth unemployment highlighted the need for initiatives such as the government’s Back to Work program offering $10,000 and $15,000 incentives to regional employers hiring unemployed or long-term unemployed jobseekers as well as the $20,000 Back to Work Youth Boost for engaging 15-24 year olds. “Today’s figures reinforce that Palaszczuk Government is correct in maintaining its focus on job-creation, especially in regional Queensland,” he said. “Job creation along with the rebuilding from Tropical Cyclone Debbie will be the focus of the upcoming State Budget to be released on 13 June.” Mr Pitt said the $100 million, two-year Back to Work program had seen 2,777 unemployed Queenslanders hired by more than 1,300 regional Queensland employers since July 2016. “The government is focused on job-creation and we are seeing some positive outcomes in today’s ABS figures showing reduced unemployment rates in some regions.” Today’s ABS data shows overall unemployment rates fell from March 2016 to March 2017 in:
Regionally the overall unemployment rates rose from March 2016 to March 2017 in:
Mr Pitt said that overall there had been a rise of 0.8 percentage point in the youth jobless rate statewide over the past 12 months to reach 13.7 per cent; while the total Queensland trend unemployment rate rose 0.2 percentage points to 6.4 per cent. Regional youth jobless rates fell over the 12 months to March 2017 in:
Regional youth jobless rates rose over the 12 months to March 2017 in:
Businesses can visit www.qld.gov.au/backtowork or call 13 QGOV (13 74 68) for more information about Back to Work, or to apply for an employer support payment, including the $20,000 Back to Work Youth Boost payment.
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