THE Rudd government’s revamped skilled migration program must be flexible and extend to a range of skilled trades if it is to help alleviate Western Australia’s looming skills shortage, local industry bodies have warned.
THE Rudd government’s revamped skilled migration program must be flexible and extend to a range of skilled trades if it is to help alleviate Western Australia’s looming skills shortage, local industry bodies have warned.
Federal immigration minister Chris Evans this week announced a dramatic shake-up of the program to better tailor it to the needs of Australian industry.
The move involves the immediate revocation of the defining “occupations in demand list” which has generally favoured the migration of relatively low-skilled workers such as hairdressers and cooks. It has also elevated overseas students with a short term vocational qualification ahead of fully qualified scientists in the queue for permanent residency.
The new national list will be compiled and reviewed annually by Skills Australia focusing on high value professions and trades, with each state also able to tailor programs to meet their specific requirements.
“These latest changes will … result in a more demand-driven skilled migration program that attracts highly skilled migrants to Australia to work in areas of critical need,” Senator Evans said.
The WA Chamber of Minerals and Energy, which estimates the state will need up to 38,000 extra workers by 2012 to meet the needs of new mining and energy developments, said the shake-up was long overdue and critical to the state’s economic future.
“Because our population is lower than other states ... by the time the data is aggregated at a federal level, the current system is more in line with the needs of east coast industry,” CME director Nicole Roocke. “So the key benefits for WA will be in being able to target people and groups in occupations of critical importance here in WA.”
But Ms Roocke warned the new program must also target skilled tradesmen, and not just university-qualified professionals, such as engineers.
“The one area in which we do have a little concern is around the degree to which this will pick up trades-related occupations, given that for a significant portion of our sector, that is where we are experiencing shortages,” she said.
The Chamber of Commerce and Industry WA also welcomed the adoption of a “flexible and transparent migration system which is responsive to the needs of all employers”.
Both chambers said they were working closely with the state government to develop a migration strategy tailored to WA’s specific needs.
Due to the changes, 20,000 would-be skilled migrants will have their applications cancelled and fees refunded. Foreign vocational students whose occupation is not on the new list will have 18 months from graduation to find sponsored employment.
