UNIONS recently took the Federal Government to task after it said it would boost the numbers of skilled migrants in order to stem a growing skilled labour shortage
UNIONS recently took the Federal Government to task after it said it would boost the numbers of skilled migrants by 20,000 next year in order to stem a growing skilled labour shortage.
“The Federal Government would be better off employing 20,000 young Australians as trades apprentices, rather than relying on migrant intakes and sending 10 department officers to boost employer expertise in engaging migrants,” said John Sutton, national construction secretary of the CFMEU.
“In our experience, employer sponsorship of migrant workers has resulted in scandalous exploitation of those workers as cheap labour. Migrant workers who are unaware of Australia’s health and safety regulations have been exposed to serious injury and in one case death.”
If the Government was prepared to back decent wage levels for apprentices, he said they might find more Aussie kids were prepared to take on traditional trades apprenticeships.
The extension of the Migration Occupations in Demand list covers bricklayers, carpenters, joiners, fibrous and solid plasterers as well as cabinet makers, plumbers and electricians.
“This will not solve Australia’s skill shortages in these sectors,” Sutton said. “What we need is a reinstatement of a strong commitment to training from Australian employers and the government. That’s the only way we address the skill requirements of Australian industry for the future.”
However, the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) welcomed the Government’s measures to attract an increasing number of skilled and semi-skilled migrants to Australia.
“This is especially important in light of the current labour and skill shortages which ACCI’s economic surveys have found is now the most important constraint on business investment,” said Peter Hendy, ACCI chief executive.
He said a program to address labour and skill shortages in Australia should have three elements:
• Growing the skilled workforce locally – ensuring that the vocational education and training sector is adequately funded and tailored to the workforce needs of employers.
• Encouraging people to move within Australia to areas where jobs and skill shortages exist.
• Migration – seeking further skilled workers from elsewhere in the world through a generous and well-targeted migration program.
