Pay to Move Here

It seems that Rockhampton has come to the point where Council needs to pay people not only to build new homes but to move here also with their recent incentive announcements. Hard for the people who live here to possibly comprehend. Is it an indictment on the Council that these decisions have been made, or is it what now needs to be done for Australian regional cities to grow? And if the latter, then that is a sad indictment on all levels of government. The reality is that there are jobs here that can’t be presently filled. Good paying jobs but arguably not enough dollars for those living in Australia with the necessary training and skills to uproot from where they are and make the move. Workers previously made redundant are now being asked to come back but even this doesn’t fill all the vacancies. Could these businesses, locally owned and multi-nationals, do a better job in attracting the desired candidates? Possibly, but it’s not just working conditions that attract applicants. Cost of living, opportunities for their partners, schools, medical facilities, recreational options, connectivity to other cities, and climate are all factors. Factors that employers don’t have control over. To have one level of government not just recognise this but do something to partly address this now, not years of talk later, is actually a positive move. But you may ask, what about local un- and under-employed, what about the railway workers that were put off with the Roundhouse closure, what about all of the school leavers that will be looking for full-time work in about 2 months time; how have we gotten to a situation where Council needs to pay people to move here to fill jobs? This is a question that will keep talkfest’s going for years, where blame will be thrown around like confetti, but accepting responsibility for this skill shortage, even though being warned that this was going to happen but seemingly doing little to prepare for it, will be handled like scones out of a hot oven. Not worth further comment here. Let’s instead look at what Council’s approximate $2500 incentive may get us. A typical Australian family with their youngest child between 5-14 spends about $2085 per week. Mortgage/rent, food, schooling, clothes, leisure, fuel, etc., it all adds up as any family knows. Of course, ideally you’ve got to ‘have it’ to spend this amount. Rockhampton region presently has jobs that can enable you to ‘have it’, basically as long as you have the skills in demand. If Council’s $2500 incentive attracts 100 families to relocate here that’s up to an extra $10.8M circulating in the local economy. More homes being built, more work created for other skilled workers, more new businesses opening, more work opportunities for our youth. Overall it improves our standard of living and provides an environment more conducive to realising our dreams. That’s for a cash outlay of around $100,000 with some free parking and rates discount thrown in. Will it work, is it enough? We’ll have to wait and find out, but at least Council is doing something tangible towards what it is there for: encourage growth, opportunity and diversity.