Jobs for the 21St Century: Building the New Economy and Addressing Youth and Long-Term

Greens tackle long-term and youth unemployment

Investing in $2.75 billion in local communities to create new jobs and quality infrastructure:

15 March 2015

John Kaye

Greens NSW MP

The Greens NSW announced today a fully-funded $2.75 billion local infrastructure program to create up to 15,000 new high quality jobs and training opportunities, many of them targeted at the long-term and young unemployed.

The money would be spent through local councils and Aboriginal organisations to build and refurbish community infrastructure, including storm-water works, rural bridge and road repair, childcare centres and preschools, sewage systems and bike paths.

The Greens have shown how $20 billion can be raised for these and other projects without privatising electricity transmission and distribution. The loan can be serviced and repaid by additional revenue raised from reinstating the vendors duty on property speculators and higher tax rates on poker machines in highly profitable clubs, along with maintaining duties on large business transactions.

Rebuilding local economies – key points:

Grants to local councils for infrastructure projects. The money would be focused on areas of high unemployment. Between 10 percent and 30 percent of all jobs would be directed at local residents who have been unemployed for some time or who are young. They will be offered paid release from work for training for up to six months full time equivalent in a local TAFE college.

Benefit: $2.2 billion over 4 years, creating up to 6,900 new jobs (full-time equivalent) and 2,000 training opportunities.

Grants to Aboriginal organisations, including Land Councils, to support key infrastructure in communities or on Aboriginal-owned land, including water supply and sewerage. This would include fast-tracking work to provide sanitation on lands handed back to Aboriginal communities..

Benefit: $550 million over 4 years, creating up to 1,700 new jobs (full time equivalent) and 500 training opportunities.

Total cost: $2.75 billion over 4 years funded from a loan serviced from a vendors duty on land sold by property speculator, higher poker machine taxes on the most profitable clubs and retaining duties on certain business transactions.

Total benefits: Up to 8,600 new jobs (full time equivalent, or 15,000 including some part-time) and 2,500 long term and young unemployed training opportunities.

Media Comments

Greens NSW MP John Kaye said: "The Greens are prepared to take on property developers, large corporations and the super-profitable registered clubs to provide the money needed to create a new future for neglected communities, young people and the long term unemployed.

"NSW is rapidly becoming a two speed economy with parts of the state effectively slipping into recession.

"As part of our vision for a green jobs-rich future for the state, we want to kick start those local and regional economies that are trapped in a cycle of inter-generational unemployment.

"Rebuilding high quality local infrastructure will not only make these regions more attractive to invest in and live in but it will create local economic activity and a skills base that will generate new employment opportunities.

"This is about lifting areas like the Far West, the Hunter and the Mid North Coast out of the consequences of decades of failed trickle-down economic policies.

"The growth cycles that have benefited property owners and shareholders have largely passed many communities by without generating new opportunities for young job seekers.

"The market has failed these communities and little will change without spending that transforms their local infrastructure and creates a skilled workforce.

"Local councils are the perfect vehicle for identifying and carrying out community infrastructure work. They know most about their local communities and its infrastructure needs and they know how to employ people to carry out small and medium sized capital projects.

"Since Aboriginal people were driven into reserves and missions, successive governments and administrations failed to invest in basic infrastructure that was taken as a basic right by the rest of the state.

"Aboriginal communities are significant land holders in parts of NSW, and are responsible for managing former Aboriginal reserves, missions and traditional lands. The Greens are aiming to provide the funds to fast-track the upgrade of the water supply and sewerage and other key infrastructure and programs communities need to support stronger local economies.

"In a wealthy state like NSW, there is no excuse for inter-generational unemployment or young people fearing they will never have a job and a reasonable income.

"Transforming NSW to a clean sustainable economy will generate tens of thousands of new jobs. Rebuilding local economies will ensure that this state does not develop pockets of sustained unemployment," Dr Kaye said.

For more information: John Kaye 0407 195 455

BACKGROUND

The Greens fully-funded $2.75 billion local infrastructure program would create up to 15,000 new high quality jobs and training opportunities, many of them targeted at the long-term and young unemployed.

These are jobs are in addition to the tens of thousands that would be created by Greens' plans announced for renewable energy, transport and social and affordable housing.

The money would be spent through capital grants to local councils and Aboriginal Land Councils to build and refurbish community infrastructure such as storm-water works, rural bridge and road repair, childcare centres and preschools, sewage systems and bike paths.

Some of this money could be used as matching funds for other sources, such as Roads and Maritime Services' 50/50 split on regional bike networks. Some councils in areas of high unemployment struggle to find their half contribution to meet the requirements of the program.

As part of the conditions for receiving the funds, councils would be required to take on employees who were young or had been out of work for sometime. Councils will also be required to ensure that employees under the scheme receive paid release from work up to six full-time equivalent months of training at the local TAFE college.

Skills would include both trades and white collar.

At least 75 percent of the local government money would be targeted at municipalities that have higher than the median unemployment rate. These include the far west of the state, the North and Mid North Coasts, the Hunter, the Central Coast, the Shoalhaven and parts of Western and South Western Sydney.

An additional $550 million would be targeted at Aboriginal organisations to fast track the existing 20-year program to install and fix sewage systems. It would also facilitate the construction of other local infrastructure.

When lands, such as former mission sites and reserves, are returned to Land Councils, local communities are often forced to fund a significant proportion of local infrastructure such as water supply and sewerage that previous governments had failed to provide. Current state government plans to fund this backlog stretch over decades and require matching contributions, leaving many Aboriginal communities living with drinking water and sewerage that do not meet the standards expected by the wider community.

Parts of NSW are effectively in recession with climbing rates of unemployment and little hope for many young people to ever access a job.

An injection of $2.2 billion into those communities would lay the foundations for a strong local economy that would generate further activity and jobs.

Local government areas that have seen entrenched unemployment would be transformed with a legacy of an active local economy, a skilled workforce and attractive local infrastructure.

The estimated 34,400 jobs-years over four years is based on typical estimates of direct employment created per dollar of infrastructure spend.

This figure does not include the additional jobs in the local small business sector, including retail and services. While it is difficult to estimate the multiplier activity, the additional infrastructure spending would create substantial growth in the demand for services and retail in high unemployment areas.

The money comes from the $20 billion of capital spending that the Greens would fund without privatising the electricity industry. As previously announced[1], a loan of $20 billion can be serviced and repaid by reinstating the vendors duty on property speculators and higher tax rates on poker machines in highly profitable clubs, along with maintaining duties on large business transactions.

Unemployment by region

Source: Dept. pf Employment, (2015) "Unemployment Rates by Labour Force Region, January 2015"

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