Securing Tassie jobs in 2025

This year, the Tasmanian Branch has been fighting hard to secure the future of our industries, under attack by rising energy costs, dumping, and targeted misinformation campaign from lobby groups thousands of kilometres from Tasmanian shores.

Our regional economy is underpinned by several key industries, such as manufacturing, mining, and food production, where a few sites may support entire communities. To lose just one of these would be devastating.

That is why it has been good to see the Federal Government step up when it counts, to secure the future of Tasmanian jobs and communities. After long months of unease and uncertainty, early this year, state and federal governments promised a $135 million rescue package to the Nyrstar smelters in Hobart and Port Pirie, which employ 1400 workers directly, and support thousands of jobs in regional Tasmania and South Australia.

The funding will support upgrades to the wharf and furnace in the Hobart smelter, and also fast-track the production of germanium and indium – two critical minerals used in semiconductors, computer screens and fibre-optic cabling.

In Port Pirie, the Nyrstar smelter has recently cast its first batch of antimony, a critical mineral used in defence and technology.

These materials crucial to realising a Future Made in Australia, and we look forward to seeing the Hobart facility transform into a nationally significant producer of critical minerals in the years to come.

And in Macquarie Harbour, the Federal Government has put an end to years of debate and anxiety surrounding salmon operations in the harbour, passing important legislation to ensure sustainable salmon farming can continue.

Our members have suffered years of attacks from lobby groups and environmental activists, which threatened the future of the industry itself – and hundreds of workers in the region. It would have been devastating to lose these jobs, and the hundreds of millions of dollars that salmon farming brings to the north-western Tasmanian economy.

Those who work in salmon farming know that our industry is a highly technical world leader in environmental monitoring and compliance.

We have always been proud to stand up for our members and their families, and it is good to see lawmakers taking a sensible approach to the future of our industries. Thank you to the Federal Government for putting Tasmanian workers first in 2025!

I want to thank all the members in Tasmania who have put in the hard yards this year and kept our state thriving, across manufacturing, mining, construction, agriculture, food processing, councils and so much more. I hope you enjoy some time with your families this summer, and have a Merry Christmas!

Senator Richard Dowling, Assistant Branch Secretary Rob Flanagan, Member for Franklin Julie Collins MP and Organiser David Meers at Nyrstar smelter