Archive for the ‘Australia’ Category

The Australian government has introduced a seasonal guest worker scheme that aims to attract unskilled workers from the pacific islands. This has been initiated in order to fill agricultural labour shortages.

But as thousands of workers are expected to come to Australia on this temporary visa scheme, 14% of indigenous Australians remain unemployed. The recruitment of overseas workers is however still essential due to the high paying Australian welfare system.

For all Australians being on welfare will in fact pay more than entry level unskilled jobs on farms and the like. Therefore getting a job is a step down in financial terms for these unemployed. It is understandable why the unemployed would not choose to work laborious jobs when they could earn more by doing nothing.

This new visa does not pose a threat on the Australian workforce as if Australians want the job it is theirs by law, but the problem comes in when one clearly sees that the unemployed indigenous population knowingly turn down such employment opportunities.

The next task for the government is to target these unemployed citizens and somehow make taking up these jobs attractive, no matter how menial. Not only will this improve population morale but also help the economy by contributing to the continued success of the country.

It seems that it is not just the mainstream industry sectors of Canada and Australia which are crying out for skilled workers. A recent report by ABC Rural shows that the bee trade is also suffering from a lack of workers.

The problem as highlighted in the article is that because visa restrictions for skilled workers are making it harder to bring professionals into Australia’s the bee trade and it is subsequently losing millions every year.

With the task of restraining bees and aiding them in their productivity of precious honey needing such specialist workers, the current situation regarding visas for the seasonal demands of such businesses is harming the trade.

According to Bee Keeper Mr Brown “there are northern hemisphere specialists ready and willing to come to Australia in the northern off-season, but visa requirements block many potential seasonal immigrants…We would love to be able to have access to these people.”

The current technique used to test immigrants for tuberculosis (TB) is insufficient; this is according to a report composed by a group of researchers entitled, ‘Epidemiology of laboratory confirmed tuberculosis in Victoria, 1990 to 2004.’

In terms of current law, the department of immigration requires all those migrating to Australia to be tested for TB via an x-ray. Although a positive result does cause outright visa refusal, but the application will not be processed until the TB has been treated.

Despite this 80% of TB sufferers in Australia are non-Australian born immigrants. This, it has been suggested is due to the techniques were cases of latent TB are likely to be missed. And it is due to this that researchers believe that the current system needs to be amended.

The researchers therefore propose that testing for latent TB should take place and follow-up consultations should be encouraged post arrival in Australia.

Although Australia and New Zealand have always shared a close relationship and both counties have for sometime attracted each others nationals to both visit and live, a new situation regarding country hoppers has been noted.

In a spate of New Zealand newspaper articles, New Zealand’s revenue minister, Peter Dunne, has described his country as a giant transit lounge as many immigrants ended up moving to Australia after stopping off in NZ.

Mr Dunne told Wellington’s Dominion Post, that nearly 20 per cent of the 37,000 New Zealanders, who went to Australia last year, permanently or for a year, were born outside New Zealand.

He says “New Zealand provides back-door entry to Australia because it has less strict immigration criteria…Most of those who moved to Australia in 2007 after immigrating to New Zealand were born in South Africa, followed by India and then England.”

The question being asked by many New Zealand nationals however that is in light of these statistics should New Zealand tighten its immigration policies in order to prevent those destined for Australia from making strategic stop gaps?

Or is this actually a positive factor which the country needs to build on, as once in the country they can then do more to encourage such migrants to stay and contribute to New Zealand’s greater to the economy and work force.

Sydney’s World Youth Day celebrations have been marred by the disappearance of 39 Indians who used the events as a scam to gain entrance through tourist visas.

Two hundred and twenty Indians travelled to New Zealand en route to the Australian religious pilgrimage, however just 181 left Auckland, New Zealand. This has sparked a man hunt in New Zealand for these potential illegal immigrants.

Of those men who have been contacted almost all have admitted their plans to remain in New Zealand. This has sparked fears at the number of those already in Australia who have the same idea.

However these missing men claim that they were promised New Zealand residency and were shocked to find they had received short-term visas, despite this they have no plans to leave.

No matter what the truth, it is a shame that such religious events have been affected by immigration and the rise of global illegal immigration.

“It appears World Youth Day has been used as an excuse and that is really quite alarming,” said New Zealand’s Catholic Church spokesperson, Lyndsay Freer.

And there is nothing that can really be done at the moment to those who did not attend the events as they have been granted entry for three months and are legal until this time period is up.

It seems that such scams are increasing in number; this hampers such get-togethers and puts the future of events like this in jeopardy.

Australia has strict visitor visa criteria that can be viewed on www.globalvisas.com, however with such events it is difficult to determine who is a genuine visitor for purposes of the event and who is using this as an illegal route to immigration.

The question is, how can they continue to hold World Youth Day or similar such events, when a minority continuously dupe the system? It is a sad reality but a valid fear.

Skilled migrants have become an integral part of guaranteeing that Australia remains a competitive economic destination. Therefore industries throughout the country are welcoming immigrants with open arms.

The latest sector to voice the essential need for skilled workers from overseas is the mining industry in the Northern Territory province. This area is booming at the moment due to uranium and gas deposits, as reported by ABC News.

And how do they attract these immigrants? The Northern Territory government is promising high salaries that are difficult to turn down.

“This industry needs to maintain its growth and success, therefore they need more workers coming to Australia under skilled visas or working holiday visas,” says Erin Ryan of www.globalvisas.com. Therefore not just the provincial but the national government are easing visa requirements through extensions and fast-track possibilities.

Currently 33 positions up for grabs from managers, supervisors to engineers. 

Australia needs immigrants; these were the sentiments of the Australian government on Friday.

Not only do immigrants provide vital skills that are needed in sectors were shortages are rife but they also add to the cultural diversity of the country. This was the conclusion of Chris Evans, immigration minister, and other officials during a Ministerial Council on Immigration and Multicultural Affairs meeting in Perth.

Those attending this meeting therefore welcomed the expansion of visas, such as the Working Holiday visa as well as other temporary and permanent visas.

Australia has finally realised the crucial need for immigrants if Australia wants to continue booming, believes www.globalvisas.com. The success of the country is ultimately in the hands of immigrants who will come and work in the country in occupations where the countries low unemployment rates equal labour shortages.

The members of this meeting also concluded that settlement services need to be escalated as the Australian population swells through immigration. 

Australian travellers are opting for more environmentally friendly travel; this is according to research conducted by Contiki Holidays.

The world is becoming “greener”, with initiatives to become more environmentally conscious springing up all over the place. This has even filtered into the tourism industry.

Young Australians seem to be setting the standard as they realise the effects their travels can have on the environment. “The world is filled with young Australian tourists,” says Erin Ryan of www.globalvisas.com. She adds that this study shows that, “not only does their tourism benefit a country economically but they now aim to help the environment at the same time.”

According to the survey 54% of young Aussie travellers expressed a want to travel using carbon-neutral options.

These include the use of recycling bins while travelling, couch touring which is less pollutant, requesting that towels are not washed daily and travelling in tourist buses that use fish and chip oil to run. This however is only achievable by changes and developments within the tourism industry, whereby more carbon friendly practices are incorporated.

Despite the want to travel “green”, it must be noted that only 9% of those interviewed travel according to these standards. (TB)

Tourism Australia is working on an international marketing campaign to coincide with the release later this year of epic film ‘Australia’, set in the outback and starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman, the film hopes to increase the countries visitor numbers as well as raise the profile of less documented areas.

Australia, which has a budget of £63m, is expected to draw a phenomenally large audience. Talking about the films imminent release the Australian tourism minister, said “the film would bring to life little-known aspects of Australia’s extraordinary natural environment, history and indigenous culture”.

The period film takes place during the bombing of Darwin in the Northern Territory and like many of its Australian predecessors, such as Crocodile Dundee it is hoped that the film will act as an exceptional opportunity for positive promotion.

Australia is already seeing a current influx in immigration particularly from the UK and with this forthcoming film being another masterpiece of the Moulin Rouge director and Aussie prodigy Baz Luhrman, surely interest from all over the world will be huge. (CN)

The Australian government has proposed that all foreigners on a study visa will be able to stay in the country for as long as another year.

This will not only be a great opportunity for these young students but due to their temporary status and lack of work experience manual industries such as the hospitality industry is bound to benefit.

Many international students come to Australia to gain from the top class educational system. While studying many often opt for jobs in restaurants and bars to subsidise there expenses, with an extra year this will continue.

This new policy will allow these students to continue to enjoy all that Australia has to offer in terms of travel, adventure and beauty while earning some money.

These changes should begin in December this year. So watch this space for more details. (TB)