Migrant worker announcement doesn’t go far enough, warn industry groups

The groups have called on the government to consider more action to help industries such as hair and beauty, which have been one of the hardest hit during the pandemic and for which staff shortages will not be supported by the government’s announcement.

On Monday (22 November), the government announced it would allow skilled migrant workers to apply for a travel exception from 1 December, relaxing restrictions with the aim of accelerating Australia’s recovery.

Andrew McKellar, chief executive of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry said the steps outlined by the federal government are critical relief for all those businesses that are struggling due to border closures.

“The arrival of skilled migrants will be instrumental in addressing the critical skills shortages that are present across all sectors of the economy. With worker shortages holding back the economy, businesses will be able to look to skilled migrants to fill job vacancies,” he said.

“Reopening to international students will be fundamental to securing Australia’s economic recovery. Prior to the pandemic half a million international students were enrolled in our universities, contributing $40 billion to the economy.”

The government has now established travel bubbles with Japan and Korea similar to those with Singapore and New Zealand.

Mr McKellar said it is now up to state and territory governments to commit to allowing quarantine-free travel for all fully vaccinated arrivals.

The Council of Small Business Organisations Australia CEO Alexi Boyd said the announcement will help address the main issue facing small businesses – the shortage of workers.

“COSBOA members have been citing the lack of visa workers and international students as a major contributor to this shortage,” she said.

“The problem spans nearly all sectors and includes both skilled and unskilled workers. We’ve heard from representatives of sectors as diverse as agriculture, hospitality, retail, hairdressing, accounting, and software, and they all say the same thing: ‘we can’t find staff.’”

However, Ms Boyd said some sectors, like health ad beauty, and hair have been left off the priority list for skilled worker visas, despite having experienced worker shortages for many years.

“This announcement doesn’t bring us back to business as usual. Small businesses continue to experience supply chain difficulties in addition to confusion and stress about the lack of clarity in vaccine mandates, two topics we need to see addressed,” she said.

Australian Retailers Association CEO Paul Zahra also called for hairdressers and beauty therapists to be added to the Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List to help address the long-term workforce challenges the sector is facing.

He said although the return of international students and skilled migrants is a welcome boost for retail these businesses – hair and beauty – are facing long-term workforce shortages.

“Staff shortages are a significant issue affecting retailers at the moment, with businesses struggling to fill vacant positions in the lead up to Christmas – the busiest and most profitable time of year on the retail calendar,” Mr Zahra said.

“There are also many businesses that struggled to retain their existing staff through the recent lockdowns when they couldn’t trade from their physical stores. So even though businesses are now back open, there are many that can’t trade at their full potential due to a lack of resources.

“International students and skilled migrants are cohorts of workers that have been sorely missed throughout the pandemic and we desperately need them back to help fill this shortfall.”