The federal government has announced its $2 billion JobTrainer scheme - with the states to provide up to $500 million - to support out-of-work Australians during the pandemic period.
The program is designed to retrain an extra 340,000 laid off workers and school leavers through short-course training programs and will subsidise the wages of a further 100,000 apprentices. Prime Minister Scott Morrison flagged in a speech earlier this year he wanted states to sign a new agreement to tailor the funding to specific areas of skills need.
The announcement coincides with the release of the June unemployment figures out today with expectations the jobless rate could hit a 20-year high of 7.5 per cent. Treasurer Josh Frydenberg conceded this week effective unemployment could be much higher - around 13.3 per cent - due to workers on JobKeeper having reduced hours and a number of people opting against searching for work while government subsidies remain in effect.
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