Drop in temporary skilled workers making move to Australia
August 14 2009 by Matt Jones
Australia Immigration Minister Evans updates us
A report released on Wednesday by the Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Chris Evans, shows that the number of skilled migrants that work in Australia on 457 visas has fallen.
The report, ‘The Subclass 457 Business (long stay) Visa’ looks at figures from June 2008 to June 2009 and shows that visa applications submitted fell by 11 per cent. The number of applications granted also fell by 13 per cent.
In June 2009 alone, applications for the skilled working visas were 45 per cent below the number received in the same month the year before.
New South Wales suffered the largest fall in the number of skilled workers making the move to Australia, down by 24 per cent. There was also a 9.5 per cent fall in applications to work in Western Australia and a 7.5 per cent fall in applications to work in Queensland
Evans’ report stated, "the Subclass 457 visa program is a demand driven scheme that has responded to the slowing economy and reduced demand in the Australian labour market.”
Only nursing, out of the top 15 occupations among temporary skilled work visa holders, saw an increase in the number of immigrant workers, up by 18 per cent.
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