Australia offers seasonal visas to avert labor shortage
SYDNEY, Australia - Australia will offer 2,500 seasonal visas to Pacific Islanders in a three-year experiment designed to address a dire labor shortage on farms.
The Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme, announced over the weekend, will offer visas to workers from Kiribati, Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea to help in Australia’s horticulture sector for up to seven months a year.
“The demand for the program came from Australian farmers unable to find the labor to get their produce to market for Australia families," Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said in a statement Monday. “Countries from the Pacific have been very enthusiastic about wanting to fill that need and be part of the pilot."
The first group will arrive later this year, and the program will be reviewed in 18 months, he said.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is expected to provide further details of the plan at this week’s Pacific Forum, a gathering of 16 nations.
Smith said the pilot demonstrates Australia’s new partnership with its Pacific Island neighbors.
“In addition to the benefits for Australia farmers and consumers, Pacific islanders will benefit from the income, experience and training received through the pilot scheme," Smith said. “The remittances sent home will significantly help the development of their villages and communities."
He said the program would include strict controls to ensure that the Pacific workers are not exploited and that working standards are maintained.
World Bank senior economist Manjula Luthria told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio that the scheme was “a dramatic announcement" for Pacific Islanders who have struggled for generations to find work in their small, remote nations.
“The situation can be quite dire in terms of unemployment. It’s (the scheme’s) really a chance to go from being nearly unviable to being economically prosperous," said Luthria, an expert in Pacific labor mobility.
New Zealand operates a similar scheme that provides jobs and incomes for workers from poor nations, and Luthria said the money the workers bring home helps improve homes and communities. - AP
The Pacific Seasonal Worker Pilot Scheme, announced over the weekend, will offer visas to workers from Kiribati, Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea to help in Australia’s horticulture sector for up to seven months a year.
“The demand for the program came from Australian farmers unable to find the labor to get their produce to market for Australia families," Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said in a statement Monday. “Countries from the Pacific have been very enthusiastic about wanting to fill that need and be part of the pilot."
The first group will arrive later this year, and the program will be reviewed in 18 months, he said.
Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is expected to provide further details of the plan at this week’s Pacific Forum, a gathering of 16 nations.
Smith said the pilot demonstrates Australia’s new partnership with its Pacific Island neighbors.
“In addition to the benefits for Australia farmers and consumers, Pacific islanders will benefit from the income, experience and training received through the pilot scheme," Smith said. “The remittances sent home will significantly help the development of their villages and communities."
He said the program would include strict controls to ensure that the Pacific workers are not exploited and that working standards are maintained.
World Bank senior economist Manjula Luthria told Australian Broadcasting Corp. radio that the scheme was “a dramatic announcement" for Pacific Islanders who have struggled for generations to find work in their small, remote nations.
“The situation can be quite dire in terms of unemployment. It’s (the scheme’s) really a chance to go from being nearly unviable to being economically prosperous," said Luthria, an expert in Pacific labor mobility.
New Zealand operates a similar scheme that provides jobs and incomes for workers from poor nations, and Luthria said the money the workers bring home helps improve homes and communities. - AP
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