Australia’s Treasurer Jim Chalmers argues a short-term boost in migration numbers is not the silver bullet to workforce shortfall as an industry leader urges the government to allow up to 200,000 overseas migrants to come to Australia a year to fill job vacancies.
It comes as more than 100 business leaders, unions and state governments prepare to meet in a two-day summit to be held at the beginning of September at Parliament House in Canberra. Chalmers has revealed that the suggestions raised at the summit will likely impact the October federal budget.
Amid calls for an increase in skilled migration visas to address the labour crunch, Chalmers said that was not the only solution to the issue.
“As we emerge from that period of COVID-19, where the migration tap was largely turned off, that should be an opportunity to talk about the best mix of migration as the program gathers speed again,” he told ABC Radio on Tuesday.
“I would caution people against thinking that migration is the solution to all of our economic challenges. That’s part of the story, but it’s not the whole story, and it shouldn’t be a substitute for training Australians for roles.
Calls to Address Labour Shortage
Andrew McKellar, chief executive Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, who suggested that the government expand the migrant program to 200,000 places a year, told Sky News on July 7 that the Australian economy was “the worst it’s been in nearly 50 years.”He noted that Australia’s current national unemployment rate is 3.9 percent, while the number of vacancies is 480,000, which is almost up to the same level as the unemployment number.
“In those circumstances, one of the most viable options is obviously to reduce the burden, the bureaucracy, the red tape, the extra expense that they’re facing, to respond quickly and get people into the country,” he said.
The sentiment was echoed by Business Council chief executive Jennifer Westacott, who argued that “businesses crying out for almost half a million workers to fill roles and keep their doors open, more than double pre-pandemic levels.”
“We need both targeted migration to fill critical shortages at every skill level right now and a skills system that lets workers easily and quickly train with the skills employers need for the longer term.”
Summit to Bring Government and Business Leaders Together
Australian Council of Trade Unions Secretary Sally McManus on July 11 said the September summit is an opportunity to fix a neglected skills sector and address a “broken bargaining system.”Treasurer Chalmers agreed, adding that “the tearing up of agreements has been a problem in our industrial relations architecture for some time.”
“If we can get agreement on some of these issues, and we can get some sense of consensus, … if there’s an opportunity to move quickly, and that’s appropriate, then we’ll do that,” he said.
“I wanted [the summit] to be soon enough so that if there were opportunities for the October budget or the second budget in May or other opportunities to legislate in the parliament, that we give ourselves that flexibility.”
