Closed borders, combined with the lack of government support for people with temporary visas, have deterred international workers from remaining in Australia.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic in 2020, international departures have outnumbered departures.
According to the latest data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, there were 27,000 arrivals and 38,000 departures in August 2021.
The flow-on effects from these statistics have impacted a range of businesses on various scales, which require specialised workers with certain skill sets.
The executive director of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) Andrew McKellar launched an appeal last month denouncing the plight of companies that are suffering from a shortage of workers, the likes of which have not been seen for “at least two decades”.
According to McKellar, “if, before the pandemic, Australia welcomed around 120,000 skilled workers, we would now need to increase that number to about 150,000 or even 200,000 in the next few years”.
At the moment, it is predicted that only 80,000 workers will be granted access to Australia, but McKellar’s appeal seems to have been heard by the Minister of Immigration, Alex Hawke, who has since talked about increasing the threshold of skilled workers allowed in the country.
Now that Australia’s borders have reopened to welcome citizens and family members, it is expected that skilled workers and international students will be allowed to follow suit, but that date has yet to be announced.
The government has released a list defining what exactly a “skilled worker” is.
The Priority Migration Skilled Occupation List – PMSOL sets out 44 jobs that are considered to be vital to the economic recovery of a post-pandemic Australia, and workers from these industries will be given priority entry.
In Melbourne, there are many sectors affected by the lack of skilled workers.
Daniele Centurione, who is originally from Abruzzo, in central Italy, works for Heritage Design, a tiling and construction company that specialises in the mosaic-style tiles that cover the floors of the verandas of Victorian houses.
“Across Australia, there are only five businesses like this,” said Centurione.
“I’m trying to help my boss find new workers because we’d like to expand the business, but at the moment it’s impossible to find anyone.
“We never lacked work during the pandemic and now that everything is reopening we have more and more jobs.”
Centurione has been doing this job for about eight years, starting his career in Perth, and eventually moving to Melbourne.
“We have a lot of work, but we can’t meet the demand because of a lack of staff,” Centurione concludes.
Christian Grieco, a surveyor originally from Naples, is in a similar position.
Having lived in Australia for almost four years, he currently works for a company engaged in major works such as tunnels commissioned by the government.
“In the last year, I’ve received many calls – at least two or three job offers every week,” Grieco said.
“My own company always has an job advertisement outside.
“There’s a lot of work to be done, but no manpower, and companies are struggling to find staff.
“Since the beginning of last year, the government has listed my job as a priority profession and they’ve been trying to encourage qualified people from abroad to come and contribute to the economic recovery of the country.”
