AUSTRALIAN IMMIGRATION NEWS

Immigration to Australia Could Help Pacific Islanders Find Skills & Employment

Monday, 23 June 2008

Australian federal government is expected to sign off on a plan to create a new "guest worker" program to allow 5,000 Pacific Islanders to work in Australia for a year to build their skills & experience before returning home to help strengthen their country's skills & economy.

The program would enable workers from Vanuatu, Tonga, Samoa, Kiribati and Tuvalu to come to live & work in Australia as part of a year-long traineeship to build their skills & experience. After a year, the workers would return home with Australian skills & qualifications which would help them contribute to their community back home.

The "guest worker" program is based on a similar program currently being trialled in New Zealand. Immigration Department Head Andrew Metcalfe led a delegation to New Zealand last month to examine the scheme.

Previously, guest worker visa schemes have been opposed by the Howard Government, but opposition foreign affairs spokesman Andrew Robb commented that the Coalition was "open minded" about the program.

Union leaders also lent their support with Australian Workers Union head Paul Howes and ACTU president Sharan Burrow endorsing a guest-worker program.

Though, some are saying that the policy does not go far enough. Former Victorian Premier Steve Bracks has called for the program to include more south pacific countries.

Mr Bracks, now an advisor for the East Timorese Prime Minister Xanana Gusmao, has called for East Timor to be added to the list of eligible south pacific Island nations eligible for this program.

"Unemployment in Timor Leste is about 45%. For young people, young men in particular, it goes to well over 50%," said Mr Bracks. "They can't get into education, they can't get work, they're frustrated by the lack of progress in their nation, so I think there is enormous merit in having a significant program of training of young people in Australia for Timor Leste citizens, a guest-worker system."

Immigration Minister Chris Evans, declined to comment on the potential involvement of East Timor in the "guest worker" program saying that the proposal would be slated for cabinet consideration.

The new policy could mean that people of pacific Island nations could have more opportunities to live & work in Australia, and would learn skills that would help them prosper in their communities.

If you are interested in Australian Visas, contact Migration Expert for information and advice on which visa is best suited to you. You can also try our visa eligibility assessment to see if you are eligible to apply for a visa to Australia.