Nice work if you can get it... Australia needs to fill thousands of jobs in tourism and hospitality
What with everyone and their dog desperately wanting to visit Australia, tourism has long been a healthy earner for the country. So it stands to reason that there needs to be a large workforce of hospitable types ready to cater for them; not just for hotels and organised tours, but in fields from catering to marketing to adventure activities.
A new report for the Department of Resources, Energy and Tourism estimates that Australia’s tourism industry currently has around 35,8000 job vacancies which it needs to fill in order to fulfil its economic potential.
And that’s not all – by 2015 the holiday industry will need to recruit a further 56,000 people, including 26,000 skilled workers. Naturally, the idea of bringing in foreign workers to fill them is under discussion.
The industry suffers from a lack of specialist skills and staff retention, as many jobs within tourism and hospitality are seen as fairly casual.
So skilled overseas workers, who would be obliged to stay put in the job for a bit, are one solution. Extended student visas and 457 visas have already been introduced for overseas workers to this effect; both tie the visa to the job.
Structured career pathways can also help with retention, because people are likely to stick at a career for longer if they can see where it’s headed. Improved training and integration of indigenous workers could help meet the demand for Aboriginal ‘cultural experiences’ and improve indigenous employment at the same time.
This has not as yet resulted in further changes to the Permanent Skilled Migration rules, but new pathways could open up to certain skill sets in the future. Watch this space.
• Full report: National Long Term Tourism StrategyÂ
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