Local Government NSW has endorsed a campaign that aims to reduce barriers to allow more people with overseas qualifications to work at their full potential, fill skills shortages, and improve services.
The Activate Australia’s Skills campaign, convened by Settlement Services International, is a growing cross-sector alliance of unions, industry and the community sector calling for reform of Australia’s bureaucratic and expensive system for recognising overseas skills and qualifications.
As shown in the report Skilled and Ready, Australia’s economy would be boosted by $9 billion each year if permanent migrants were able to work in jobs that matched their skills at the same rate as Australian-born workers.
A key challenge is that people with valuable expertise face an endless maze of hurdles to get their overseas skills and qualifications recognised: hugely expensive fees, outdated paperwork requirements and slow, complex processes.
To change this, the Activate Australia’s Skills campaign is calling on the Australian Government to implement key reforms:
- One national governance system for all overseas skills and qualifications recognition, including an ombudsman with regulatory power to provide independent oversight and transparency.
- A seamless process with greater national consistency, reduced red tape and financial support for individuals to remove cost barriers.
- An online portal with all the information so people know what they need to do to get skilled and ready to work.
- Migrant Employment Pathway Hubs with recognition navigators who are tasked to get qualified people working in their professions again.
More than 80 organisations have endorsed these recommendations, including Master Builders Australia, the ACTU, Regional Australia Institute, CEDA, Allianz, and the Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia – a strong alliance of business, union, think tank and community sector voices.
“You can support by joining the campaign as an organisational supporter, signing the open letter as an individual, and by sharing campaign resources with your networks,” LGNSW said in a statement.
“If your council has faced challenges with people getting overseas qualifications recognised, or know a local business or community member affected, then please ask them to share their story.
“Each story shows why this issue matters and why we need a simpler, faster, and fairer system for recognising overseas skills and qualifications. You can also show support by asking your Federal MP to get these changes over the line.”
