Resource, health and service sector unions are united in calling for a Senate Inquiry into the 457 visa scheme following allegations of widespread rorting. “Unemployment has hit a 12 year high yet instead of tightening up requirements to import labour – the Government is trying to help employers bypass local workers in the Northern Territory under new designated area migration agreements,” said ACTU President Ged Kearney. Submissions to a Government Review into the 457 visa scheme closed four months ago and the Government is still yet to release its report. Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation (ANMF) Federal Secretary Lee Thomas said the 457 visa scheme was initially created as an emergency stop-gap measure used to address critical skills shortages. “We find it unacceptable that instead of employing locally-educated nursing and midwifery graduates, employers in some health sectors continue to employ increasing numbers of workers from overseas – the current rate is 3,000 to 4,000 annually, a staggering 400 per cent increase since 2005. “The Government must act, otherwise more than 3,000 nursing and midwifery graduates who still cannot find jobs will soon become a lost generation of highly trained health professionals who are unable to deliver quality care across Australia’s health and aged care sectors.”
Posted on: Tue, 12 Aug 2014 06:14:00 +0000
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