High Welfare in NSW Is Encouraging the Labour Shortage: Hospitality Minister

'We paid them too much to stay at home'

A homeless person sits on the pavement in Melbourne's CBD in Victoria, Australia on June 4, 2021. William West/AFP via Getty Images

Candidates for the Labor and Greens parties for a regional seat in New South Wales (NSW) both acknowledged they didn’t know how to fix the labour shortage, while the National MP attributed the problem to unmotivated workers who are paid “too much to stay at home” by the state.

The comment was made ahead of the NSW state election at the Meet the Candidates public forum held by the Tamworth Business Chamber on Feb. 27.