Eligible Australian aged care providers can now access a streamlined process for recruiting workers from overseas. The process is accessed by using the new Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement. Here’s what you need to know.
A labour agreement is an agreement between the Australian Government and employers that is made to enable approved businesses to sponsor skilled overseas workers. Labour agreements are used when there is a demonstrated labour need that cannot be met in the Australian labour market and where standard temporary or permanent visa programs are not available.
Labour agreements are generally in effect for five years and provide for certain visas to be granted. Labour agreements have existed for some time in areas such as farming and hospitality. There is now a labour agreement for the aged care industry.
The purpose of the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement is to make it easier for aged care providers to recruit workers from overseas to fill gaps in their workforce. Eligible Australian aged care providers can use the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement to:
To access the Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement, you must first enter into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the relevant unions(s):
Once you have an MoU in place, the Government will “consider labour market testing requirements satisfied”. This means that, once you have an MoU with the unions, the Government will take this as proof that there are no appropriate local candidates for the job, and that you are permitted to bring in overseas workers.
Once the MoU is established, you can submit the labour agreement request to the Department of Home Affairs. Online labour agreement request forms are available at the Department of Home Affairs online service ImmiAccount.