New measures seek to draw in workers from Sydney, other states
The state government of New South Wales has launched a new campaign in a bid to boost essential worker numbers in regional communities by drawing them out from other states.
The Make the Move campaign aims to lure in essential workers currently residing in Sydney and Adelaide in South Australia to transfer to regional NSW to bolster the local workforce there.
"The NSW Government is serious about ensuring the people of regional NSW have access to quality critical services. A robust regional workforce is a vital part of that," said Premier Chris Minns in a statement.
The campaign will shed light on the stories of first responders, healthcare workers, and educators about how moving to regional NSW has granted them a better work-life balance, more time for personal pursuits, and an overall improved quality of life.
"Make the Move shares the experiences of those who have already taken the leap and found the change has given them more time to do the things they are passionate about, as well as the opportunity to have a big backyard and raise a family within a close-knit community," Minister for Regional NSW Tara Moriarty said in a statement.
The series will be disseminated across various media channels, including radio, print, digital, social media, and bus shelters, over the next few months.
Workers welcome from other states
Despite the announcement only mentioning Sydney and Adelaide, Minns told news outlets that they are also open to essential workers coming from Victoria and Queensland.
"For the past decade, other states have been poaching our best and brightest to work in their institutions," Minns said as quoted by 7News. "If there are good people that are considering relocating, coming, and working in the NSW public service, we'd love to have them."
This initiative comes after the NSW government doubled from $10,000 to $20,000 the available support under Rural Health Workforce Incentive Scheme.
The Make the Move campaign is part of the government's bigger Essential Worker Attraction Programme, which the government launched to address the fast growth of job vacancies in regional NSW.
According to government data, there are more than 23,000 jobs available in the regional communities.
"With the growing number of jobs in a wide range of professions and industries, regional communities are attractive places for skilled workers wanting to advance their careers while enjoying the many lifestyle benefits of country living," the NSW said on its website.
'Last-ditch attempt' from NSW to fill skills gaps
Stephen Mullighan, South Australia's treasurer, said they weren't worried about losing essential workers from Minn's campaign.
"What you're seeing from Chris Minns and NSW is a last-ditch attempt to start filling some skills gaps that have grown into yawning chasms in the last three year," Mullighan said as quoted by 7News.
Minns admitted that they weren't able to give South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas a heads up over their plan.
"He can read about it in the newspapers or watch our ads on TV," Minns said.
But Malinauskas told 7News that they understood why NSW is taking such measures, noting that 30,000 people had left their state in the past year.
"We're doing a far better job of being able to attract people to our state," the SA premier said as quoted by 7News. "This state's got a lot of things going our way, increasingly it's being talked about in other parts of the country and we welcome that."
