Doors open to combat skills shortage
By Jewel Topsfield | theage.com.au | 13 May
The skilled migration program will jump by 30% next year, the biggest increase since the post-World War II years, in a bid to ease the skills shortage and fight inflation.
The influx of 133,500 skilled migrants next year, up from 102,500 in 2007-08, will be controversial, with critics claiming Australia should be focusing more on training locals to tackle the skills crisis.
Demographer Bob Birrell has argued that skilled migrants from non-English-speaking countries are struggling to find professional jobs and there is no justification for further expansion.
The short-term impact of permanent migration on inflation is questioned by some economists, who argue migrants put pressure on housing construction and rents.
The Government has also pledged to invest $1.9 billion over five years to fund up to 630,000 new training places, including apprenticeships. This is an increase on its election commitment of 450,000 training places over four years.
As revealed in The Age, Australia's refugee intake will increase by 500 to 13,500 in 2008-09, the Government will scrap the controversial temporary protection visa regime, where refugees were forced to reapply for asylum, and spend $49.2 million over four years to overhaul the migrant English program.
The Government says while its so-called "education revolution" would help meet medium to longer-term skill needs, immigration provided a more immediate response.
Immigration Minister Chris Evans said: "The permanent skilled migration program is a capped scheme that has not been allowed to grow sufficiently in the past to respond to the skills shortages now faced by employers."
He said research showed the labour market participation rate for permanent skilled migrants was now more than 90%.
But in the latest edition of People and Place journal, Monash University's Dr Birrell argues there is no recent data to support the assumption that the migrant influx is actually filling skills vacancies. While people from countries such as New Zealand and England were snapped up, employers were shunning those from non-English-speaking countries because of their poor English.
Despite the serious shortage of accountants in Australia, only 25% of 20 to 29-year-olds and 43% of 30 to 64-year-olds from non-English backgrounds found employment in the field.
Senator Evans said the skilled migration program aimed to target skills to meet the needs of the job market by maximising employer-sponsored migration.
Victorian Premier John Brumby, who has indicated he wants to increase Victoria's share of the nation's skilled migrants from 26.8% to 28.5% by 2011, is likely to welcome the boost.
The skilled migration program uses the migration occupations in demand list to recruit workers in short supply.
The latest list produced by the Immigration Department includes more than 100 jobs, from accountants, engineers and doctors to plumbers, hairdressers and pastry cooks.
The Government has committed $19.6 million over four years to improve the processing and compliance of the temporary skilled migration program, including the controversial 457 visa scheme. The number of 457 visas granted has jumped from 39,500 in 2003-04 to more than 100,000 in 2007-08.
When in opposition, Labor and unions warned unscrupulous employers could use the program to exploit migrant workers in terms of wages, conditions and safety. However, businesses say only a minority of employers abuse the system and there is an urgent need for temporary foreign workers.
First published by TheAge.com.au on May 13 2008
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