The Victorian Government is creating more jobs to keep our waterways clean and support fire affected regional communities during the coronavirus pandemic as part of the Working for Victoria initiative.

Minister for Employment Jaala Pulford was at Gong Gong reservoir today to announce more than 265 new jobs across seven catchment areas and four fire affected council areas in North East Victoria and East Gippsland.

The Government’s $500 million Working for Victoria program creates employment opportunities for people who have lost their jobs due to the coronavirus pandemic while delivering valuable community services, with the initiative so far creating more than 9,000 jobs since it launched in April.

Jobs will be created across the Mallee, Glenelg Hopkins, Port Phillip Westernport (metro), Goulburn Broken, North Central, North East and Corangamite Catchment Management Authorities.

These jobs will improve land and catchment health through the removal of rubbish, increased revegetation, pest management control and maintenance to keep waterways clean, safe and healthy.

The works will also include improvements to parks and reserves, such as track maintenance so they can be enjoyed by locals and visitors when restrictions are lifted.

The new agreements with fire affected regional councils East Gippsland Shire Council, Alpine Shire Council, Wangaratta Rural City Council and Wodonga City Council will support land management and bushfire recovery, economic development, infrastructure maintenance and recreation asset maintenance.

East Gippsland Shire Council will undertake an environmental blitz with repair work in council managed reserves and trails. Wodonga Shire Council is taking the quieter time to replace the softfall in more than fifteen parks and playgrounds, undertake landscape plantings within the city and perform street furniture maintenance.

People looking for work and businesses searching for staff are encouraged to register with Working for Victoria at vic.gov.au/workingforvictoria.