Mackay Local News - 28 May 2021

Page 1

Friday, 28 May, 2021

MACKAY LOCAL NEWS •

Circulating in the Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday Regional Council areas

Friday, 28 May, 2021

1

www.mackaylocalnews.com.au Issue 16 • $2.50

Boom in new homes

NEW Mackay home-owners Lucy Steele and Chris Smith are so happy. They are one of over 1000 couples who are building new homes in Mackay, Isaac and the Whitsundays. A record 664 new homes have been built in the past year, plus a further 446 new homes now have building approvals. CONTINUED PAGE FOUR

PLEA FOR JOB SUMMIT By JOHN BELL

THERE has been a plea for a Mackay job summit to solve severe unfulfilled business job vacancies in the Whitsunday and Isaac business and agricultural communities. Labor Candidate for Dawson Shane Hamilton’s said that generous Commonwealth Government cash incentives of $6000 to $9000

for each employee to move to regional areas in North Queensland hadn’t worked. “We need to sit down and identify what each of the roadblocks are, so we can fix them, to stop business communities being unable to find staff,” Mr Hamilton said. The Labor candidate’s perceptive call comes at a time when the Palaszczuk Labor Government

has publicly celebrated its $7.5 million in repeated cash offers to each metropolitan job seeker to work in North Queensland’s tourism businesses. A delighted Annastia Palaszczuk announced that her ‘“Working in Paradise” promotion has been so successful that there have already been 10,529 registrations by 9am on Tuesday May 25, with 63 per cent of reg-

istrations coming from interstate. The Premier explained that there are 238 vacant jobs in Mackay and 146 in the Whitsundays to fill. “In Mackay there are 11 vacancies for waiting staff, 49 for chefs, 32 for bar staff, six for receptionist, 67 for baristas, 52 for kitchen hands, 18 in housekeeping and three in functions and events. “In the Whitsundays there are vacancies for 28 chefs/cooks, 23

in housekeeping, 26 in reservations/reception, 15 in café/restaurants, six for bar staff and three for skipper/deckhands.” Premier Palaszczuk’s glossy brochure “Working in Paradise” offers each job seeker a $1500 cash incentive to relocate to North Queensland to work in the tourism and agricultural sectors. “We’re also offering a $250 travel bonus to help workers to

travel there,” Annastia Palaszczuk announced. “Grab your friends and take a tourism job to work in paradise – that’s the message we’re sending to thousands of Queensland and Australian jobseekers.” Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe added that the Work in Paradise is designed to help ease the work force shortage facing many tourism hotspots.

GREEN ECONOMY, GRANTS, BATTERIES AND COAL - P8


Turn static files into dynamic content formats.

Create a flipbook
Issuu converts static files into: digital portfolios, online yearbooks, online catalogs, digital photo albums and more. Sign up and create your flipbook.