Chris Hayes (Werriwa, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

A month ago I had the great honour of attending the first of the government’s planned job expos. It was conducted in my electorate of Werriwa—in Liverpool, to be precise. It was a fantastic event. I turned up, as we around this place turn up to many events, not quite knowing what to expect. To put it in context, Liverpool currently has an unemployment rate of 8.6 per cent. The south-west of Sydney is one of those areas where unemployment is a crucial thing, but more disturbing is the youth unemployment rate, which borders around 25 per cent.

Over 9,000 people turned up for this job expo, which was put on by the department and chaired by the Parliamentary Secretary for Employment, Jason Clare. Many employers not only participated by posting jobs earlier during the week but posted jobs that day. While I was there, 575 real jobs were put on boards to attract young people and people who are unemployed, which showed the employers’ desire to participate. TAFE colleges, various government based employers and youth facilities were represented. This was all about coordinating the activities of the south-west of Sydney with a view to targeting employment.

It was also very good to have Scott Cam from Backyard Blitz as the guest speaker on that occasion. I thought that since he was there he obviously was not doing my backyard, so I was safe about that. There was a lot of lawnmowing to be done when I got home after not having been there for a month or so. Bear in mind that, for the younger people there, this fellow epitomises a builder who goes out there and can turn his hand to various things. His message to the young people of south-western Sydney was, ‘Have a can-do attitude.’ He encouraged young people who participated in this expo to go out and back themselves, be confident and have a go. I thought that was a pretty inspirational position to take. As I said, 9,000 people went through the turnstiles, so we know precisely how many people are showing an interest in this. More importantly, having 575 real jobs on display for people was a marvellous tribute to Jason Clare and his team within the department.

Ms Anna Burke (Chisholm, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In accordance with standing order 193, sadly for the member for Oxley, the time for members’ constituency statements has concluded.