On 5 May, the Australian government announced an Aged Care Labour Agreement to address the skills shortage in this sector. The agreement will promote increased recruitment and retention in the aged care sector and provide additional incentives for employers to attract workers to the sector.
The purpose of the labour agreement is to allow companies sponsor overseas workers for the Temporary Skill Shortage (subclass 482) visa in occupations such as:
Nursing support worker
Personal Care Assistant
Aged or Disabled Carer
It also enables companies to sponsor overseas workers for permanent residence under the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa program. Workers must have at least two years full-time work experience in Australia in a relevant occupation.
To access the Aged Care Labour Agreement, aged care providers must first enter into an MoU with the relevant union - Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation, Health Services Union, or United Workers Union.
Once the MoU is established, aged care providers can submit the labour agreement request to the Department of Home Affairs.
As part of the labour agreement, aged care workers have also access to concessions to the standard visa requirements. This comes off the back of the government's announcement of a historic 15% pay rise to aged care worker's wages from 1 July this year.
Further information on the new Aged Care Labour Agreement is available here.
Do you require further assistance
If you have further questions about the above, or have any other immigration related query, please get in touch with our experienced team. Contact us by email at hello@canberramigrationservices.com.au or by phone at +614517572873.
This article does not constitute legal advice or create an attorney-client relationship. Please consult an immigration professional for up to date information.