Webster: Dream jobs are coming to where you live

REGIONAL Australia is the best place to live, work, invest and raise a family.

As we have made adjustments to our lives to manage the COVID-19 pandemic and the restrictions it has imposed on our lives, we have discovered we can work from anywhere, provided we have access to good phone reception and the internet.

Workers across the Mallee electorate, including engineers, public servants, corporate workers, designers and many more occupations have discovered that office work does not need to be done in an office.

This week Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack launched the Regional Australia Institute’s Regional Australia Council 2031. This initiative will bring together 10 of Australia’s biggest corporate organisations and use their influence to help facilitate a population shift to the regions.

Too often I hear of families whose children have left the regions and moved to the city in order to pursue their dream job.

This shouldn’t be the case. If their dream job is in the corporate or professional world, they should have as much access to that job in the regions as in the city.

Why should people on the hunt for a good corporate or professional job with a decent wage miss out because they live in Mildura, Ouyen, Horsham or Maryborough?

Access to a dream job shouldn’t be dictated by postcode. No one should have less access to education or earn less because they choose to live in regional Australia.

If you live in Red Cliffs, but the job you want is in Melbourne, apply for it and ask about the possibility of working remotely. Business is positioned to think outside the box due to our experiences throughout COVID-19.

People have proven they can work remotely and be just as effective as those in an office in the city. Modern technology means virtual office spaces have popped up across Australia, with effective output and contribution.

Talented people can be found all over Mallee. As I travel the electorate I’m constantly amazed by the skill and initiative shown by our people.

During COVID-19 I have had countless meetings with people across the electorate and the country using Zoom and video conferencing. It has meant more meetings have been possible due to spending fewer hours on the road, and more outcomes.

My vision is to see people leaving the cities such as Melbourne, and discovering the regions and everything they have to offer. My husband and I did 42 years ago and we have loved the Mallee ever since.

People in cities are looking to our regions and the opportunity it presents with clean air, quality of life and shorter travel times. In the regions, property buyers can find a large home with a big backyard and get to work in less than 10 minutes, for the same price as a one-bedroom unit in Melbourne.

Importantly, regional centres such as Mildura, Horsham and Swan Hill are large enough to get a good cup of coffee, but small enough to care.

Anne Webster, Member for Mallee