E&OE
18 August 2008
Interview - The World Today
Subject: Seasonal Worker Scheme
ELEANOR HALL: The Federal Government is defending its
Pacific seasonal workers pilot scheme against Opposition claims
that it lacks detail and will not address skills shortages in
non-horticultural industries.
The Prime Minister Kevin Rudd is heading to the Pacific Islands
Forum this week where he'll offer the program under which
Australia will take up to 2500 guest workers, over the next
three years, from Kiribati, Tonga, Vanuatu and Papua New
Guinea.
The Pacific workers be allowed to work harvesting fruit and
vegetables for up to seven months a year at a time and will be
paid at standard Australian rates.
The Foreign Minister Stephen Smith has been speaking to
Alexandra Kirk.
STEPHEN SMITH: We've made it clear we were considering
the New Zealand pilot program and I made it clear to my
counterparts in the Pacific that we were giving consideration
to a pilot scheme.
Any pilot scheme is necessarily restricted and restrictive.
We've chosen four countries. Three of those are involved in the
New Zealand scheme itself and that is an advantage.
But this is very good news for the Pacific and we think the
Pacific will see it as such.
ALEXANDRA KIRK: Well, why not other countries like the
Solomon Islands, Fiji and Samoa for example?
SMITH: Well, we certainly wouldn't contemplate
Fiji in the absence of Fiji returning to democracy. I make that
separate point but any pilot program is necessarily
restrictive.
What we want to do is to test the effectiveness and efficiency
of such a scheme. Build on the experience that the New
Zealanders have gained. We are proposing to review it after 18
months.
That review will give us the opportunity not just to judge its
success but on the basis of success to contemplate whether
other countries and other regions of Australia might
potentially be involved.
KIRK: Is the Prime Minister expecting
criticism at this week's Pacific Islands Forum from Pacific
Island nations that have missed out?
SMITH: Well, I think the highest I would put it
would be that a number of Pacific Island Forum member countries
have made it clear to us that they would like to be involved in
any pilot program or subsequent scheme but I suspect it will be
more disappointment rather than criticism.
This is a very significant decision by the Australian
Government. This is potentially a very significant benefit to
the Pacific generally and to the Pacific Island community.
KIRK: Why limit it to horticultural
industries? What about other sectors of the Australian economy
suffering acute labour shortages such as the hospitality and
catering industry, which is complaining that its needs have
been ignored?
SMITH: Because we want to ensure that any
program that we put in place is absolutely rigorous.
We want to ensure that, that the arrangements whereby seasonal
workers come to Australia are rigorous both in terms of who
comes and the conditions under which employers and employees
operate when they are actually here.
KIRK: So why couldn't it apply to any other
industry?
SMITH: Well, it's really been the horticultural
industry that has been pressing government for a considerable
period of time. It is really the horticultural industry that is
subject on our understanding and our assessment to the most
severe seasonal acute shortages.
We have had in the past examples of temporary workers coming to
Australia where they have been treated very badly or where the
conditions that they have been given have undercut Australian
jobs or Australian conditions.
That won't occur under this scheme.
KIRK: On that point, the Australian Workers
Union says that the pilot guest workers scheme should be
scrapped if it becomes clear Australians are missing out on
these jobs as a result.
SMITH: Well you can't get into this scheme
unless an employer can satisfy Australia, Australian officials
that they can't meet their requirements from the existing
Australian workforce.
KIRK: Well, what about the 100,000 Australian
workers who remain unemployed? Are you sure that none of them
could pick fruit or harvest vegetables?
SMITH: Well, the horticultural industry has been
saying for a number of years that on a seasonal basis, they
have acute shortages.
If someone is out there who doesn't have a job, if they are
interested in getting a job, it seems to me that there are
plenty of opportunities in the horticultural industry on a
seasonal basis.
KIRK: What happens if the economy starts to
turn sour as some economists are predicting and the Reserve
Bank is certainly predicting unemployment will rise? Have you
thought of that?
SMITH: Well, the whole point of the scheme is
that if a worker can be sourced currently from Australia that,
that, that employee takes priority. That is the first
point.
Secondly we have also made it clear that the conditions which
apply to any seasonal worker cannot undercut the conditions and
entitlements that go to resident Australian employees.
The whole basis of the scheme is to fill a gap which the
industry has been unable to fill from the existing Australian
workforce.
KIRK: So if unemployment goes up for example
and the workers can be sourced from Australia, then therefore
you cut back on the scheme. Is that right?
SMITH: Well, irrespective of the state of
employment or unemployment, the whole scheme is predicated on
the base, on the basis that if you can source a worker from
Australia, you don't need to source a worker from a Pacific
Island seasonal worker scheme.
HALL: That is the Foreign Minister Stephen Smith
speaking to Alexandra Kirk.
[Ends]
Media Inquiries: Foreign Minister's office (02) 6277 7500