Labour shortages push shearing industry to seek new visa solutions

Labour shortages in the shearing industry are pushing its leaders to seek cheaper and more timely options to bring in overseas workers to fill the gaps during peak seasons across the country.

The newly-formed National Wool Harvesting and Training Advisory Group, which met last month in Sydney, has highlighted some potential solutions to the labour shortages.

This includes the priority to get shearing recognised on the Skilled Occupation list, which would open up access to the 400 (Temporary Work — Short Stay Specialist) and 482 (Temporary Skill Shortage) Visa options.

Both the Shearing Contractors Association of Australia and WA Shearing Industry Association have highlighted that more work needs to be done to bring staff in from overseas for the peak seasons Australia-wide.

SCAA executive officer Jason Letchford said progress has been made with the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme for shearers and outlined the two pathways being pursued — the Palladium (which helps facilitate the scheme on behalf of the Australian Government) or through an Accredited Labour Hire company.

“We are working closely with Australian Wool Innovation to have initial training at the Falkiner Memorial Field Station in Conargo in Southern NSW,” Mr Letchford said.

“I was recently in India as part of an Australian trade delegation and a labour and skills exchange type of scheme may be an option that aligns well with the recently ratified Australia-India Free Trade Agreement,” Ms Hall said.

The WA Wool Training Advisory Group, led by Pastoralists and Graziers Association livestock committee chair Chris Patmore, from Eneabba, put forward a proposal at the Sydney meeting to have a national campaign to promote increased recruitment of shed workers from farming families.

Mr Patmore said the proposal was the brainchild of WASIA, which has been looking at ways to attract people to the industry and keep them.

WASIA president Darren Spencer said it was a proposal worth pursuing.

“Attracting shed staff can be difficult but in WA we have had some recent success of promoting role models within schools,” Ms Spencer said.

“While some kids may have grown up on farm they do not necessarily know the opportunities for holiday or part time work in sheds.”

WA runs between eight to 10 shearer training courses a year, mostly at Rylington Park in Boyup Brook, with up to 20 students at a time, learning shearing or wool handling skills.

Mr Patmore said the industry was becoming more professional in the way it recorded information and recently set up a database of students to track them as they progressed through from the novice stage through to employment.

“There’s not a lot of data on the retention rate of students going through the courses,” Mr Patmore said.

“We have set up at database to follow up and see how they are progressing.

“We are getting a lot more professional about it.”

He said while about 240 students could potentially go through the courses each year, the numbers would be less as they generally doubled up, having to redo the novice course or move on to the improver course.

There was also a one-on-one in-shed training course available to refine the skills.

The NWHTAG also heard from SCAA Shearer Woolhandler Training, AWI and AWEX on recent training and initiatives to attract and retain wool harvesting staff.

All agreed improving the standard of the workplace, whether in terms of in shed equipment, facilities or work practices, will help attract more people into the industry.

The NWHTAG brings together State Wool Training Advisory Groups (WoolTAGs) and key Wool Industry Organisations to progress the wool harvesting industry.

Membership includes representatives from the WoolTAGs chaired by AgForce Queensland, Livestock SA, NSWFarmers, Victorian Farmers Federation and the PGA.

Other key industry representatives are from AWEX, the National Council of Wool Selling Brokers of Australia, SCAA, WASIA and WoolProducers Australia.

AWI director Don Macdonald, the independent chair of the Committee, said the group was working very well together.

“Wool harvesting is the number one issue for woolgrowers,” Mr McDonald said.

“The advisory group is a great opportunity for all key industry organisations to work together.

“Collaboration is the way to go and collectively we’ve got a better chance of resolving the challenges.

“The State training advisory groups are working well together and sharing information that benefits the industry nationally.

“It’s clear that many growers, shearers and the contractors who have lifted their game are getting better results.

“As an industry we need those improvements to spread more widely.”