Back to Work program supporting jobs in regional Queensland

Published Thursday, 13 October, 2016 at 10:51 AM

JOINT STATEMENT

Premier and Minister for the Arts
The Honourable Annastacia Palaszczuk

Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations, Minister for Racing and Minister for Multicultural Affairs
The Honourable Grace Grace

The Palaszczuk Government’s two-year, $100 million Back to Work jobs program is supporting 350 jobs in regional Queensland, with hundreds more on the way.

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said the regional jobs program was supporting new jobs in a wide range of industries in regional Queensland, including health care, agriculture, building and construction, retail, hospitality and community services.

“Back to Work is giving regional employers the confidence to hire, with 350 regional jobs already being supported by this program,” she said.

“More than a third of these jobs are for long-term unemployed who have been out of work more than 12 months.

“There are a further 181 applications in the system, with more and more employers keen to access support payments of up to $15,000.

“We’re very encouraged that some employers hiring multiple workers, which is good for regional jobs and regional economies.

“The back to Work program will support up to 8,000 jobs in regional Queensland over the next two years.”

Employment Minister Grace Grace said Back to Work program was delivering great results. “This program is still in its infancy, but it’s already a hit with regional employers and jobseekers,” she said.

“We have Back to Work teams out there on the ground in seven regions, linking employers and jobseekers with employment and training opportunities. “We’re seeing more and more applications every day and we expect to these numbers grow in coming weeks and months.”

Back to Work:

  • Provides employer support payments for eligible employers who hire an unemployed worker
  • $10,000 for an unemployed worker
  • $15,000 for a long tern unemployed worker (out of work for 12 months or more)
  • To be eligible for an employer support payment, employees need to have started work on, or after Friday 1 July 2016, and have been employed for at least four weeks. 
  • Eligibility criteria apply and payments will be paid to businesses in two parts.
  • The first payment is made after one month, and the balance at the end of the employee’s first year with the business.

Businesses can visit www.qld.gov.au/backtowork or call 13 QGOV (13 74 68) for more information about Back to Work, or to apply for an employer support payment.