Premier Colin Barnett has presided over another sharp decline in Western Australia's manufacturing sector, with Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) data released this week revealing WA lost 13,300 manufacturing jobs between May and August this year.



Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU) State Secretary Steve McCartney said the loss of skilled local jobs was no surprise, given more than 90 per cent of the fabricated steel required for the Gorgon project was being done offshore.


‘WA’s booming resources sector should be filling up all manufacturing workshops and creating thousands of apprenticeships for local kids.
‘Instead, the vast majority of the work is still going offshore and local kids are being denied the opportunity to get apprenticeships and the skills they need for the future.’

During the same period Youth Unemployment in the South Metropolitan Region increased from 17.8% to a staggering 20.6%, well above the state average of 12.6%.

‘Our kids are being denied the chance to take part of the booming resources sector. Thousands of apprenticeships are going begging as local workshops miss out.’

Mr McCartney said that the Barnett Government’s outright rejection of legislation that would assist the State Government win more local work from resources projects shows that they are not serious about delivering more work for local fabrication businesses.

‘Colin Barnett voted down legislation to provide transparency and accountability to the tendering of manufacturing work before immediately flying to China to promote the Oakajee project, which he has already promised will deliver engineering and fabrication jobs to China.

‘Mr Barnett needs to get serious about saving manufacturing jobs.  He needs to put politics aside and support joint union and industry efforts to provide more skilled jobs and opportunities for local people.’