Employment

Last Friday, after six long years and several challenges, Neville Holt received his Certificate III in Meat Processing and Meat Retail. His certificate was presented by William Angliss trainer Trevor Edon, with IGA Store Manager Angus Harrison in attendance, along with some of Neville’s apprenticeship supporters.

Local Buloke Shire Young Citizen of the year (2024), Blake Lee, and Birchip P-12 teacher, Marian Haddrick, have created an advertisement for the township of Birchip to encourage a swell in population to take up the available employment opportunities in the region.  

The Australian Bureau of Statistics’ (ABS) regional labour force data, released yesterday, shows that another 6,700 people in regional Victoria found jobs in the past month. Reflecting the strength of the state’s economy, the number of people employed in Victorian regional communities is now 828,500 – an all-time high.

Brenda Poole of Narrandera serves as the vibrant and dedicated Aboriginal Education and Engagement Coordinator at TAFE NSW. With over 20 years of experience, Brenda is a force to be reckoned with, especially her infectious energy and passion for her work.

A General Practitioner who retired from clinical practice to live in Yamba and took five months to secure an appointment with a local doctor whose books were open, says a large percentage of GPs don’t have their own doctor ... Dr M has offered some solutions to the health crisis in the region, which could ease the pressure on local GPs and enable doctors to access consultations with colleagues.

Yorke Peninsula hospitals are on the brink of a collapse of services, according to the nurses and midwives’ union, which is calling on residents to support its statewide campaign to counteract staff shortages in regional hospitals.

TAFE NSW Wollongong West will partner with a meat industry peak body to host a unique program this month offering local jobseekers a “taster” of the butchery trade and helping address a worsening skills gap. The three-day Introduction to the Retail Butchery Industry course ...

The expansion of one of the Clarence Valley’s largest timber factories, Big River Group is a huge boost to the local economy and sets the bar high in supplying the sustainable manufacturing of high-quality specialist technical timber products across the State. The upgrade includes the installation of state-of-the-art machinery that will substantially increase Big River’s output enabling them to supply an unprecedented volume of timber products.

About 40 salaried jobs at the Maryvale Mill will be gone by June as Opal moves to slash further positions across the company in a bid to stabilise its financial performance. The 40 are believed to be among about 220 salaried company-wide employees who will be made redundant, adding to the more than 300 workers who lost their jobs when Maryvale's white paper production plant was closed late last year.

The CEO of a Cootamundra aged care facility has welcomed a move by TAFE NSW Cootamundra to reintroduce a critical healthcare course amid a deepening skills shortage in the industry. For the first time in almost a decade, a Certificate III in Health Services Assistance will be offered at TAFE NSW Cootamundra ...

In a first for the Riverina and most probably in New South Wales, a close association has developed between agribusiness in the Riverina and secondary schools teaching agriculture ... The Riverina Compendium provided a vehicle to build on the past experiences, to attract a suitably qualified workforce, to provide a greater number and diversity of jobs within the Region...

Last month at the GRDC Crop Update I put my name down to attend the GIWA breakfast expecting to hear all about how growers' 1 per cent of farm gate returns is being spent on grains R&D, only to find that I had signed up for the Ag Sector Diversity and Inclusivity Breakfast ... Now, don’t think I'm not into equality and diversity; I’m a big supporter of equality of opportunity with the goal of the best person getting the job, and I’m an even bigger supporter of diversity of opinion, as groupthink or lack of thinking is the beginning of the end for most organisations or even whole countries.

Seems the old saying "all roads lead to the city" applies as much to country kids as it does to new migrants who have just arrived. Can you believe that Australia has imported 8.15 million people since 2000? ... The National Skills Commission report has found that 45 per cent of employers struggle to fill apprenticeship positions and even then 53 per cent of starters fail to complete their qualification. Australian kids just don't want to get their hands dirty, while the skilled migrant workforce who are trade-qualified prefer the big cities to the bush.

More jobs are likely to be lost at the Maryvale Paper Mill, where more than 300 workers have already been made redundant as the parent company Opal continues a major shutdown to transition to a packaging paper manufacturer. White paper production - the well-known Reflex copy paper brand - ceased before Christmas, 2023. "This unfortunate situation has led to more than 300 redundancies to-date at Opal," a company spokeswoman said.

Patrick Goldsmith. Premier Peter Malinauskas has earmarked Upper Spencer Gulf as the future of the state’s potential prosperity. Speaking at a public forum in Port Pirie on Tuesday, February 27, Mr Malinauskas outlined his government’s plan to invest in green energy, including making the most of abundant solar, wind, copper and magnetite iron ore resources.