An Australian multimillionaire property developer is being slammed for his views on unemployment.

Tim Gurner has told the Financial Review Property Summit a sharp rise in unemployment is the only way to lift productivity.

He says there needs to be pain in the economy to remind employees they work for the employer, not the other way around.

Sydney University Business School associate professor Chris Wright says it's an insensitive thing to say.

"Unemployment is a bad thing. There's been a lot of research showing the huge consequences it can have for people in terms of well-being- it contributes to suicide rates."

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