Perfect one day, jobs magnet the next: Qld to lure tourism staff from interstate
Queensland will ramp up a campaign to get more hospitality workers to head north to fill job vacancies as the Government announces sports stars will be on hand to meet fans at the next Super Schools vaccination blitz weekend.
Image: Pexels/Rene Asmussen
It comes as Queensland recorded no new locally acquired cases on Wednesday and one new overseas case, detected in hotel quarantine.
Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk on Wednesday said there were hundreds of vacancies in the State’s tourism and hospitality sectors.
Palaszczuk said the $7.5 million Work in Paradise program would be boosted with an interstate marketing blitz to encourage people to north, far north and western Queensland to work.
The hospitality industry is crying out for bartenders, baristas, waiters, cooks and tour guides and the marketing blitz is aimed at getting people from other States to move north when the borders are fully opened on December 17.
“We are creating more jobs than we have Queenslanders to fill them,” Palaszczuk told Parliament.
“Right across the State we are seeing strong demand from tourists looking to book holidays in Queensland after December 17.”
Tourism Minister Stirling Hinchliffe said that from Friday the campaign would launch in Southeast Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria.
“A Work in Paradise advertising blitz will hit TV screens, radio, online and social media here and interstate,” Hinchliffe said.
He said there were more than 50,000 young Queenslanders graduating from year 12 this week that could also apply for jobs.
“We’ll be targeting school leavers on social media with the stories of young people already working and living in paradise.”
The Premier announced that on Wednesday, a total of 82.75 per cent of Queenslanders had received the first COVID-19 dose and 71.07 per cent were fully vaccinated.
Another super schools vaccination weekend is planned for this week with the added sweetener that sporting stars from the Brisbane Broncos, Gold Coast Titans, Queensland Firebirds and Brisbane Roar, will be on hand to meet fans at various vaccination sites.
“It is not a matter of if more cases will come to Queensland but when. But we are not helpless … we have the ability to protect ourselves,” Palaszczuk said, urging people to flock to schools this weekend for their jabs.
Palaszczuk said the public would have the incentive of meeting their favourite sports stars.
“Sport has the ability to unite and inspire us. That includes spreading the ‘get vaccinated’ message and I want to thank all the clubs, players and athletes who are taking part,” Palaszczuk said.
