Unemployment Rises Again - Still No Plan!

Wayne Berry - Opposition Spokesperson on Employment

Media Statement - 8 February 2001

The rising unemployment rate in the ACT highlights the Humphries Government failure to implement policies to address the anticipated downturn in the economy Labor Shadow Employment Minister Wayne Berry said today.

Mr Berry was commenting on the latest Labour Force figures for January 2001 released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. The figures show the third consecutive month of rising unemployment in the ACT with the 8500 Canberrans unemployed, up from 8100 in October.

"That's 400 more people seeking employment," Mr Berry said, "and we have 1000 15-19 year olds looking for full-time work. But there are fewer full-time jobs - 600 fewer in January.

"It is well known that after a time lag from a fall in job ads, unemployment worsens. In the ACT job ads have been falling for six months and for the fourth month full-time jobs have fallen. We now have 1900 fewer full-time jobs than in September 2000.

"These signs are worrying and still there is a deafening silence from the ACT Government on its plans to deal with a problem that has been widely predicted by independent commentators.

"Once again I call on the government to develop and implement plans to deal with falling employment and rising unemployment in the ACT.

It is not good enough for the Chief Minister to bury his head in the sand and claim that we have lower unemployment than the rest of the country - that has always been the case until the last recession in the ACT under his predecessor Kate Carnell," Mr Berry concluded.