Community
10 September, 2023
Unemployment rates fall
REGIONAL unemployment in Victoria has fallen as jobs continue to grow in towns and cities across the state.
The latest Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data shows Victoria’s regional unemployment rate fell to 2.4 per cent in July – the lowest in the country and the lowest mark in the state’s history.
Unemployment has fallen to 1.7 per cent in Warrnambool and the south west, well below the national regional unemployment rate which stands at 3.3 per cent.
Treasurer Tim Pallas said Victoria was poised to experience further economic growth moving forward.
“Jobs creates connection and confidence for workers and the community – it’s a credit to all Victorians that the labour market is so buoyant,” he said. “Record high regional jobs and record low unemployment is a great combination and the outlook is positive.”
More than 8000 jobs were created in regional areas last month, with the total number of people in work in the regions reaching 864,000.
More than 205,000 regional jobs have been created since Labor formed government in 2014, when the regional jobless rate was more than twice the current rate.
The labour market overall has seen 3.65 million Victorians are in work and Victoria leads the nation in jobs created last month, over the past year and since November 2014.
More than 500,000 Victorians have secured a job since the September 2020 height of the pandemic, representing 140,000 more jobs than the next best performer.
Victorian wages jumped by 0.7 per cent in the June quarter and 3.6 per cent over the year – the highest annual growth since 2011 – providing a boost to family budgets.
Victoria’s economic outlook is strongest of all the states according to Deloitte Access Economics, which forecasts the economy will grow by a nation-leading 3.1 per cent over the next two years.
The most recent ABS growth data shows Victoria’s state final demand grew by 0.7 per cent in the first quarter of the year, higher than the national average and the second highest of any state.
