Jobs data puts state at top for growth

TASMANIA had the equal highest rate of employment growth across the nation in December, new data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows.

But it wasn’t enough to shift the state from its place on the bottom of the ladder when it came to ratio of people employed in the Tasmanian population.

Data released on Thursday revealed there were now 290,300 Tasmanians who were employed, a record high Premier Jeremy Rockliff said.

“We have seen more than 55,200 more jobs for Tasmanians since we came to office in 2014, including more than 10,800 since this time last year alone,” he said.

Mr Rockliff said Tasmania also recorded its highest number of women employed in the state.

Tasmania had the equal highest rate of employment growth in the country, tied with NSW at 0.4 per cent.

But Tasmania’s employment-to-population ratio continued to fall behind the rest of the country, at 60.3 per cent.

The figure compares to NSW, which was 64.4 per cent, Western Australia, which had 66.6 per cent, and the Northern Territory which had 71 per cent.

“The unemployment figures continue to bounce around between surveys but it is clear that Tasmania is lagging behind the other states on key measures,” Labor’s treasury spokesman Shane Broad said.

“This is particularly the case with the youth unemployment rate, which is 10.5 per cent in Tasmania compared to 7.6 per cent nationally.”

Mr Rockliff said Tasmania reached another record, with 186,000 Tasmanians in fulltime employment, the highest ever. “Our plan for Tasmania will continue to see our state breaking records as we continue to support Tasmanians, our businesses, and our community,” he said.