AUSTRALIA’S WORKFORCE SHORTAGE IS AT AN ALL-TIME HIGH

The ongoing economic recovery efforts post-pandemic and recently concluded election haven’t stopped the skill shortage. There are 480,100 job vacancies in Australia, an increase of 13.8% from February 2022.

Check out staffing challenges experienced by every industry.

Automotive Shortages 

The motoring trades industry is facing a workforce shortage of over 30,000 people, according to Richard Dudley of Motor Trades Association Australia (MTAA). Meanwhile, WA Motor Trades Association has approximately 40,000 automotive vacancies for roles like panel beaters, spray painters, mechanics, and motor trimmers.

There are already more than 2,400 skilled migrants working in Australia’s automotive industry, nearly 700 in Western Australia. 

The new Labor Government is interested in continuing Labour Market Testing (LMT), where a position will be tested and advertised locally to try and find a suitable local worker before an employer takes on an overseas worker.

Recommendations from industry associations and employers: 

1. Wage increases to become the industry of choice
2. Make skilled migration more accessible and affordable to address automotive skill shortages. 

Engineering Shortages 

Engineering Australia’s job vacancies surged by 50% in 2021 compared to the previous year. Civil, industrial, mechanical, and production engineers are in demand. This demand increased the most in Queensland, followed by New South Wales and Victoria.

As of June 2022, the Department of Home Affairs has more than 6,000 for offshore recognised graduate (Subclass 476 visa) holders pending. The skilled recognised graduate visa (subclass 476) is a temporary visa for new engineering graduates from recognised schools and institutions. It provides the right to work in Australia and be eligible for a provisional skilled visa or PR.

Only 3% of the 476 visa applications were approved in the last financial year. From July to February last year, only 45 visas were issued to engineering graduates out of 1500 lodged applications. Senator Nick McKim called for the extension of 476 visas and has not reached the federal government to address the backlog in the applications to the scheme. 

The Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association (AREEA) reported that the mining sector would require 24,000 new employees to operate new, expand and restart mining and oil and gas projects expected to enter production by December 2027. The workforce estimation projections those projects already in the committed or advanced planning stages. These projects would generate $130 billion in new capital investment. 

As of May 2022, the natural resources industry employed more than 295,000 workers. AREEA Chief Executive Steve Knott said the industry is ready and willing to work with government, unions, and other stakeholders on several initiatives, from training and VET system reform to streamlining skilled migration processes. 

Healthcare Shortages 

The aging population and population growth are the major reasons for the chronic shortages in medical workers. A report by Deloitte cited the demand for GPs will grow by almost 40% in the next ten years, with an estimated 50% increase in the cities. But a GP shortfall means more than 11,000 doctors desperately needed by Australia’s health system won’t be in the workforce.

Rural doctors Association South Australia president Peter Rischibieth said GP shortage was a perennial problem due to a lack of qualified doctors practicing in the rural area. The shortage also occurs in practice nurses, allied health professionals, mental health workers, and visiting and consultant resident medical specialists. There are also severe shortages in nursing. According to the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, around 8,000 nurses are needed due to turnover. This figure is an underestimation. 

Agriculture Shortages 

The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES) survey data indicates the total number of workers used by Australian horticulture farms dropped by approximately 8% due to a decrease in the number of seasonal Working Holiday Makers (WHMs).

The Pacific Australia Labour Mobility or PALM workers (Seasonal Workers Programme and Pacific Labour Scheme) have also declined by around 9%.

The government has the following Labour Market Initiatives to address the workforce shortfall: 

• Visa extensions and additional flexibility to encourage temporary visa holders in Australia to work in agriculture 
• Reopening the PALM scheme, which already employed 12,500 seasonal workers in Australia 
• Introduction of agriculture visa to support the long-term future of Australia’s agricultural industry  

Tradies Shortages 

Australia is facing its biggest tradie shortage in the last 10 years, with prices and demand adding further pressure to the construction industry. There is a shortage of bricklayers, roofers, and carpenters. According to Housing Industry Association, the demand was driven by people’s desire to build bigger homes and take advantage of low-interest rates in house construction.

There are 22,967 technician and trade worker job vacancies available across the country. There is also labourer shortage, with 9,985 unfilled job vacancies. According to Weld Australia, the country is facing a severe shortage of skilled and qualified welders, from welding supervisors, inspectors, and welders. The occupation is more in demand than ever, with several large and high-value projects like Nava Shipbuilding Program, the Sydney Metro project, and Melbourne Airport Rail Link.

The number of welding trade workers in Australia dropped by eight percent during just five years; from 75,800 in 2014 to 69,600 in 2019.  Reasons for the shortage are the rapidly aging welding workforce, the declining number of welder apprentices, the lack of short-term workers, and immigrants due to COVID-19-induced border closures.

Information Technology Shortages 

According to ACS’s Digital Pulse 2022 report, tech professionals grew by 8% over the past year. There are 870,000 Australian IT workers.  And in the next 5 years, the tech industry will hire over 1.2 million people, with the workforce growing at an average rate of 5.5% per year.

83% of employers say the skill shortages are already affecting business operations.

To address the IT skills gap, the ANZSCO codes for IT positions underwent an overhaul to reflect the modern tech workforce.  ABS released the updated ANZSCO that introduced changes including priority emerging occupations: Cyber Security Engineer (261315), DevOps Engineer (261316), Penetration Tester (261317), Cyber Governance Risk and Compliance Specialist (262114), Cyber Security Advice and Assessment Specialist (262115), Cyber Security Analyst (262116). These new occupations enable recruiters, migration agents, and others to address the cyber security skills gap by providing visas for those roles.