Ahead of tomorrow’s Jobs and Skills Summit, the Australian sugar milling sector has outlined its priorities for addressing the sector’s skills and labour shortages.
Converting sugarcane to raw sugar through advanced manufacturing, the Australian sugar milling sector employs thousands of factory, transport, engineering, IT, science, finance, procurement and administration staff.
Operating from Bundaberg to Cairns, the sector presently has hundreds of vacancies across multiple vocations including trades (fitters and electricians mainly), loco drivers, general mill workers, analysts, engineers lab technicians, accountants and more.
“Despite a variety of attraction and retention strategies, including apprenticeship programs, our sector like many sectors is having difficulty finding and keeping the right people for these positions. The issue is exacerbated by our aging workforce, the coal mining boom in regional Queensland and a lack of affordable rental housing in our communities” said ASMC CEO, Rachele Sheard.
Ms Sheard added, “To address the ‘here and now’ shortfalls and operating pressures, we need highly flexible migration settings and housing availability and affordability. Currently the process of identifying overseas workers, undertaking the requisite skills recognition checks and applying and being granted short term visa’s is taking up to 10 months. There is then limited housing options for these workers and their families”.
The ASMC supports the following actions for addressing the current problems:
- More flexible and expedited short-term worker visa and permanent residency options.
- Better demand forecasting for labour and skills by regional employers to allow training providers to be more ‘demand responsive’ to market needs.
- Promotion of workforce mobility and participation through a rental affordability scheme for regional Australia.
- Ensuring that our schools continue to promote school-to-trades job opportunities.
Media contacts: Rachele Sheard ASMC CEO, 0408 777 898
Background
ASMC is the peak body representing the interests of raw sugar manufacturers and marketers. ASMC represents five sugar manufacturing companies which collectively produce 90 percent of Australia’s raw sugar at their 16 sugar mills in Queensland.
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