The Government has unveiled plans for the largest increase in seasonal migrant workers in more than a decade, in an effort to ease the worker shortage in the horticultural sector.
The new RSE cap will allow an additional 3000 workers into the country - taking the total available to 19,000 workers annually from participating Pacific countries, providing workforce relief to the horticulture and wine sector.
"The additional 3000 places is a 19 per cent increase on the previous season, and acknowledges the industry's current needs based on strong growth, and the lower number of working holiday makers onshore right now," Immigration Minister Michael Wood said.
"We are listening to industry, and worked closely with horticulture and wine sectors to ensure we strike the right balance by incentivising local employment, bringing in further additional workers, and also requiring working conditions to be improved."
The new allowance does come with new conditions for employers with RSE workers to receive access to sick leave and employers committing to provide transparent, clear information and independent support for the workers.
The new cap was settled on a tri-partite basis for the first time ever, with both employer groups and unions at the table, enabling a discussion about both the number of workers, and how we can ensure good employment practices, Wood said.
That was in addition to the pre-existing minimum wage requirement of $22.10, which we introduced during the pandemic, he said.
"We continue to work urgently with the industry and unions on further short-term improvements and employee safeguards to provide greater protections to workers. This work is in addition to our wider policy review to improve the RSE scheme for workers, as previously signalled."
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