'Shocking': Tasmania's unemployment rate now worst in nation

That's 1.2 per cent higher than the national average and 0.5 per cent higher than the next highest state in Queensland.

According to seasonally adjusted estimates from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1700 Tasmanians lost their jobs in October, bringing the total to 10,000 since February, before COVID-19 wreaked havoc on the national economy.

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The state's youth unemployment rate sits at 15.9 per cent, which is the highest bar Victoria.

Finance Minister Michael Ferguson said it had been a challenging year for many Tasmanians but the government was focused on "giving businesses the confidence they need to offer more employment".

"Pleasingly, in a sign of confidence returning, more Tasmanians returned to the workforce in October, and the participation rate increased 0.3 percentage points to 61.4 per cent," he said.

"The increase in participation has had the effect of increasing the unemployment rate, which we acknowledge, with a reminder of the need for our massive training and employment boost."

Labor leader Rebecca White said the latest figures were "shocking" and Premier Peter Gutwein needed to "face up to the jobs emergency that has occurred under his watch".

"This is the first time since the GFC that unemployment in Tasmania has been above 8 percent and it's terrible news for the state and the thousands of people who've lost their jobs," she said.

"There are now close to 40,000 Tasmanians on some form of unemployment benefit. Our fear is these numbers will only get worse when JobKeeper is withdrawn in March."

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