The international borders may be open again and overseas backpackers might be arriving once more … but there is still plenty of demand for grey nomad workers.
Places like WA’s East Kimberley region are suffering a chronic worker shortage, even though the Dry Season tourist influx only a month or so away.
The ABC reports that workers began arriving in the region after the state’s hard border came down last week but there are still hundreds of positions to be filled, especially on farms and in tourism businesses.
Kalyn Fletcher manages a distillery and seed business and is desperate to fill more than a dozen positions heading into the dry.
She said the border opening came ‘too late’.
“I’ve been scouring around for workers for five or six weeks now and have not had a single applicant that could anywhere come close to filling the positions,” she told the ABC. “I think backpackers or working holiday makers are inundated with opportunities and to get someone as far as Kununurra is a real challenge.”
She said her operations would be scaled back if the workers were not recruited soon, wiping off hundreds of thousands of dollars in revenue.
Farmer Katrina Jowett said she would look to reduce planting unless a worker with a strong enough skill set could be found.
“Most businesses are seeking workers, there’s lots of positions vacant,” she told the ABC. “It’s a tough market to recruit in … definitely down on historical applications.”
There’s hope a special Commonwealth Designated Area Migration Agreement will be put in place in the region in the coming months.
The special status exists in seven places in Australia and makes it easier for employers to access overseas workers with a wider range of skills.
