Evans: employers must put locals first

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Leader of the government in the Senate and Minister for Immigration and Citizenship Senator Chris Evans, said last week that the government does not support any employer who seeks to use the temporary skilled migration program as a substitute for local labour.

His statement came after Australian resident welders, were sacked from a building site in northern Western Australia, while workers on 457 visas, were retained. But the sacked workers have no legal recourse.
Evans advised that, “Temporary overseas workers on subclass 457 visas, are only to be employed if skilled labour cannot be sourced locally. The government recognises the need for industry to access skilled overseas labour where there are demonstrated skills shortages. But it is important that the program complements domestic recruitment and is not used to replace local workers. Our priority is to provide training and job opportunities for Australians.”
He said a range of measures introduced by the government in consultation with industry and unions last year, ensures that temporary skilled overseas workers on 457 visas, are not employed ahead of local workers, or used to undermine Australian wages and conditions.” Apparently though, they can be retained and Australian residents sacked.
Evans said the Labor Government’s worker protection laws, which came into effect on 14 September 2009, includes the requirement to pay overseas workers market salary rates so that 457 visa holders are on the same wages and conditions of employment as those provided to an Australian worker undertaking equivalent work in the same workplace.
Figures released last month show that almost 90% of temporary skilled migrants granted Subclass 457 visas in the first seven months of 2009-10, are managers and professional workers.
The figures also show that the average total salary package for all new temporary skilled migrant workers is almost $100,000, an increase of $10 000 on the same time last year, Evans said.
In Western Australia, the average total salary package for all new 457 visa workers is $114,800 and $165,500 in the WA mining industry.
There has also been a dramatic reduction in the number of visas granted. Primary visa grants in January 2010, were 45% lower than January 2009, and 6% lower than December 2009. And at the end of January 2010, there were 71,290 457 primary visa holders in Australia. This was 13% lower than the end of January 2009.
Evans’ report is at: www.immi.gov.au/media/statistics/

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Evans: employers must put locals first

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