Baillieu Needs A Plan As More Jobs Are Lost

The Premier has no choice but to deliver a jobs plan after Qantas today announced it would sack hundreds of workers and Victoria lost thousands of full-time jobs last month, Leader of the Opposition Daniel Andrews said today.

Today’s Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) Labour Force figures for January reveal that in the past month Victoria lost 15,000 full-time jobs. This is despite the rest of Australia creating 27,000 new full-time jobs.

Victoria’s participation rate dropped to 65 per cent. This means there are 47,000 fewer people trying to find a job.

The figures follow the announcement by Qantas that hundreds of Victorian-based workers are facing an uncertain future as the airline reviews its operations.

“It seems that not a day goes by without more job losses being announced, but the Premier appears unwilling or unable to outline what he will do to stop them,” Mr Andrews said.

“Has the Premier made any real effort to keep Qantas jobs in Victoria? And what will he be doing now to make sure as many jobs as possible are protected under the review by Qantas?

“If the Premier cared for Victorian workers, he would be fighting for them.

“Surely it’s time for a jobs plan from Ted Baillieu.”

Mr Andrews said while there were external factors at play, there were a number of ways the Baillieu Government could maintain Victoria’s hard-fought reputation as a place to do business, including cutting payroll tax or WorkCover premiums.

“Mr Baillieu needs to understand that nothing is more important to a family than a job,” he said.

“Hiding in his office does nothing for the thousands of Victorian workers who are being laid off.

“Ted Baillieu needs to deliver a plan to create and secure jobs.”