Fears over skilled labour shortfall Down UnderPost by Cameron Davidson on 29th August 2010 in Immigration, Working abroad, Living abroad Australia is said to be facing a skills shortage, with not enough workers moving to Australia to plug the gap. A report by The Sydney Morning Herald said figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show net permanent and long-term arrivals in the country were down 31 per cent in the year to June, with around 100,000 fewer migrants settling in the country compared to the previous year.
The construction industry is said to be one sector that is feeling the pressure, with many housing trades reporting an undersupply of labour. While worrying times may lie ahead for Australian businesses, the news is sure to be of interest to skilled Brits thinking of packing up their tools and shipping to Australia.
Harley Dale, chief economist at Australia’s Housing Industry Association, said: “There’s no doubt there is a shortage of labour there.
“It’s not as acute as it has been at some periods in the past simply because industries were recovering from what was a very weak 2008/09, but we have pretty clear evidence that there are widespread labour shortages.”
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