As I’ve commented on before (Good news for regional Qld if Carmichael mine goes ahead – jobs market weaker than in SEQ), over the last twelve months or so, there has been a large difference in employment growth between SEQ and the rest of Queensland. Mark Beath at Loose Change has produced a good chart based on Pete Faulkner’s trend labour force estimates showing this stark difference, which you can view at his post: Cairns employment disappoints in October. Weaker labour market conditions in the rest of Queensland have been reflected in relatively high unemployment rates in several regional areas, including Townsville, Cairns and Wide Bay (see map below based on Queensland Treasury’s 12 month moving average estimates of the original ABS data).
That said, any growth in employment in SEQ appears to be benefiting mostly people living in Brisbane’s Inner City, North and East, with relatively high unemployment rates in some other parts of SEQ, such as Ipswich and Moreton Bay – North (see map below).
For more commentary on regional employment trends, see Pete Faulkner’s post:
Queensland Economy Watch 