Ballarat's unemployment rate is at 1.6 per cent, the lowest in the state, but there are fears this could change as major industrial employers fret about legislative changes, a lack of government contracts, and insecure contract work.
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State Treasurer Tim Pallas was in Ballarat on Friday, spruiking money announced in May's state budget for Her Majesty's Theatre at its official reopening.
He attributed the low unemployment rate to the government's regional payroll tax policy, which has been cut by 50 per cent, and in four years another 50 per cent, for companies that employ 85 per cent of their workforce in regional Victoria.
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"It's quite phenomenal really, when you think about it," he said.
However, for jobs reliant on government contracts, such as at the Alstom train factory, workers are more concerned about losing their jobs.
While the state government provided money for design work for the X'Trapolis 2.0 project, there is no word on when a decision will be made - workers are furious, with a demonstration on Wednesday calling for certainty.
"We are very pleased to say there are discussions going on with Alstom about the potential for this company to provide us with the next X'Trapolis trains," Mr Pallas said.
"I don't want to be dismissive or cryptic about this, but we have to have a commercial negotiation with this company.
"It's important to this government that our rolling stock strategies provide a vital and competitive rolling stock manufacturers in this state, and Alstom, from our point of view, is a vital part of that."
As well as the 65 workers at Alstom, hundreds of direct and indirect jobs at the Ballarat Gold Mine could be affected by changes to mining royalties, bringing Victoria in line with the rest of the country, and there are concerns regarding the future of the Police Assistance Line.
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