'Guest workers' and Australia's labour shortage (1 Viewer)

[leetom]

Australia has a labour shortage. It has been splashed across the front page of the SMH for a number of days now.

To address the problem, the Federal Government plans to relax laws preventing the use of imported workers. The 'guest workers' will come primarily from PNG and China.

Thoughts?

 

[Not-That-Bright]

I think this is a good idea, as long as they get paid a fair salary (we do have a minimum wage..)
This should be a double pronged attack tho, we need a more productive workforce, not just a larger workforce.

 

[leetom]

Making our current workforce more productive is a big ask. Specific industries would have to be singled out and their workers labelled as 'can become more productive'. This wouldn't go down very well because making someone become more productive is pretty much the same as telling them they are lazy and need to work harder. Of course, industrial action ensues.

Employers stand to gain loads. The guest workers shouldn't lobby for higher wages than the bare minimum, and I'm sure our bare minimum is leagues ahead of what a simple, unskilled Chinese labourer is currently receiving in China.

I personally would be happy to see an importation of Chinese workers, early figures were about 10 000 to work Victorian fruit growing regions alone. If 10 000 rural (where they will un-doubtedly come from) Chinese are earning fifteen Australian dollars or so per hour and they send a portion of that money back to China, the poverty that currently grips rural China will be eased, to an extent, enabling the provinces to flourish or at least stand on their own feet.

 

[Comrade nathan]

The guest workers shouldn't lobby for higher wages than the bare minimum

Do you mean you personally believe the guest workers shouldn't be allowed to lobby for higher wages?

 

[Not-That-Bright]

I have the view that they should be allowed to lobby for any pay they can possibly recieve...
If someone is willing to do a better job than you for cheaper, unlucky, get more skills or get paid less.

 

[Korn]

i think it would be better if we could get the population who already live here to fill these occupations, it would be a good idea to target highschool kids and primary school kids so that they want to do these jobs

 

[MoonlightSonata]

Do you mean you personally believe the guest workers shouldn't be allowed to lobby for higher wages?

I think he means it is unlikely that they will lobby

 

[ihavenothing]

Guest workers has been an issue from areas such as Germany and the EU where most are only sent for menial jobs and many end up living in slums with crime. But i'm pretty sure John Howard's government would not like to see any more Asians in Australia (not that theyre is nething wrong with that), We have to fully discuss the ramifications of using Guest workers from poorer countries who think they will be set up but really are working on the arse end of jobs in a country with racial intolerance increasing. The Liberal Party will find ways to seek skilled people from more Caucasian areas with high unemployment (eg East Germany, Russia, Poland) to overcome as it may be easier to assimilate them into the society.

 

[Not-That-Bright]

No, they'll just get people from iraq and make them live around electorates with high greens votes.

 

[Korn]

Guest workers has been an issue from areas such as Germany and the EU where most are only sent for menial jobs and many end up living in slums with crime. But i'm pretty sure John Howard's government would not like to see any more Asians in Australia (not that theyre is nething wrong with that), We have to fully discuss the ramifications of using Guest workers from poorer countries who think they will be set up but really are working on the arse end of jobs in a country with racial intolerance increasing. The Liberal Party will find ways to seek skilled people from more Caucasian areas with high unemployment (eg East Germany, Russia, Poland) to overcome as it may be easier to assimilate them into the society.

Hey Australia might be the most tolerant nation in the world, but i think we are very cool with Asian ppl coming here

 

[Comrade nathan]

Guest workers has been an issue from areas such as Germany and the EU where most are only sent for menial jobs and many end up living in slums with crime. But i'm pretty sure John Howard's government would not like to see any more Asians in Australia (not that theyre is nething wrong with that), We have to fully discuss the ramifications of using Guest workers from poorer countries who think they will be set up but really are working on the arse end of jobs in a country with racial intolerance increasing. The Liberal Party will find ways to seek skilled people from more Caucasian areas with high unemployment (eg East Germany, Russia, Poland) to overcome as it may be easier to assimilate them into the society.

I will use Maddox term here.

OPP'S YOUR'E A RACIST.

Why dont you admit you are a racist.

You must be a reall moron to think that highly skilled well paid workers from Caucasian countires are really going to want to leave their country to come to Australia to work in unskilled, low paid jobs.

The idea is to attract low paid average skilled workers to come to Australia to work low paid jobs but will still be better then the work they were doing back home. If they only allowed this new scheme to procced for Caucasian countries then it will be the same, meduim skilled workers from low paid jobs or unemployed coming to Australia with hopes of better life.

I will also mention, workers that will not organise for higher wages. They will be to scared of being deported to organise.

OMFG I EDITED THIS 5 TIMES

 

[ihavenothing]

Since when does more money mean a better life?

 

[miss_b]

hmm...let me see...

How about since money=food

Trust me, if you lived in poverty, more money means a better life. I would have thought that would just be obvious...

 

[miss_b]

Damn, don't you just hate it when those "foreign invaders" come to "our country" and take away jobs from us "Aussie battlers"?

 

[ihavenothing]

thats not poverty, esp china has enough arable land for food which is cheap anyway and they are not in poor conditions such as sub-saharan africa where theyre is scarcely enough. Ithink the government needs to review its option for people who are REALLY poor.

 

[Not-That-Bright]

Africa!
Lets take the poorest people from africa... and bring them here.

 

[miss_b]

It was YOU who said that more moeny doesn't mean a better life...

Anyway, there are A LOT of poor countries. The point of the program is to find people who have the skills to fill in the jobs. And China is not as well of as you might think (from my understanding they are still in recovery)...

 

[ihavenothing]

So is (East) Germany. There will inevitably be backlash about "foreigners" taking jobs that could just easily go 2 locals in regional areas (u know wat country ppl are like) Its not a matter of just plonking people down here and expecting everything will work out ok. And i'm not being racist, there are dirt poor white people too (Albania). I'm only sayin i doubt John Howard would won't to see any more Asians, we already have the problem with illegal immigration.

 

[Not-That-Bright]

wtf.. we have an employee SHORTAGE, there is LOW unemployment, why not?
It's not like these jobs are actually being "taken", they're just being filled which they otherwise would have not been.

 

[miss_b]

wtf.. we have an employee SHORTAGE, there is LOW unemployment, why not?
It's not like these jobs are actually being "taken", they're just being filled which they otherwise would have not been.

EXACTLY!! These replacements are not permanent. If there were Aussies to fill the jobs we would not need the foriegn workers...

And ihavenothing, you are a racist.