Unemployment rates have been lower in regional SA than Greater Adelaide since August after being higher than city areas for the first part of the coronavirus pandemic.
The total number of people employed in regional parts of the state in December was 188,900, the highest since the record figure of 190,700 in June 2018.
The State Government is celebrating the latest figures as a sign of economic strength.
However, the participation rate, the percentage of people either in work or looking for it, is still much lower in the rest of the state than in Greater Adelaide.
Regional SA had a participation rate of just 59.9 per cent in December compared with Greater Adelaide where it was 64.3.
The national rate in December was even higher at 66.1 per cent with an unemployment rate of 4.2 per cent.
Of the individual country regions, The Barossa, Yorke Peninsula and Mid North regions had a December unemployment rate of 4.4 per cent.
In the Outback statistical region, which includes Eyre Peninsula and the cities of Port Augusta, Whyalla and Port Lincoln, unemployment in December 2021 was just 2.4 per cent and the participation rate was an impressive 72.1 per cent.
The 46,900 people in the Outback region with jobs in December was a record.
The South East region, which includes the Fleurieu Peninsula, Riverland, Kangaroo Island, Murray Bridge and the South East, had an unemployment rate of just 2.1 per cent.
However, the participation rate was just 57.3, slightly up on the 56.2 participation rate in December 2019 when the unemployment rate was 5.8 per cent.
The number of people with jobs in the region fell slightly in December to 91,300, well down on the record level of 96,700 in June 2018.
Thomas Foods International is a major regional employer in South Australia and interstate with operations in many parts of SA including Lobethal, Murray Bridge and the South East.
It is expected to complete the construction of its new meat processing plant near Murray Bridge this year and is looking for production staff.
Group managing director Darren Thomas said the company currently had a need for more production workers across all of its operations nationally.
“I expect that labour shortages will again present a major challenge not just for us but for the entire meat industry in the year ahead,” he said.
“Meeting the labour shortage challenges is about promoting the positive career opportunities on offer as well as working with relevant authorities and stakeholders on strategies to encourage people to the regions.”
SGS Economics & Planning associate James Atkinson said labour shortages were a major disincentive to the growth of new businesses and expansion of existing businesses in regional areas.
“Really low regional unemployment figures like this are a bit of a double-edged sword,” he said.
“On the one hand, it’s great because it indicates that pretty much everyone who wants to work, is able to.
“On the other, for local businesses, extremely low unemployment rates mean a shallow labour pool that makes it harder to find the staff they need to keep their businesses running profitably.”
The State Government was last week spruiking the latest ABS figures as highlighting “the strength of the regional jobs market”.
“An unemployment rate of just 2.8 per cent across regional South Australia is an outstanding result and highlights just how attractive it is to live, work and raxjmtzywise a family away from the stress and strains of life in Adelaide,” said Deputy Premier Dan van Holst Pellekaan.
“Even greater job opportunities for regional South Australia are just around the corner with major power projects about to begin.”
These projects include the building of the 900km high voltage transmission line linking the South Australian and New South Wales energy grids and Neoen’s massive Goyder South renewable energy project near Burra in the state’s Mid North.
