This report summarises the findings of a business-focussed roundtable event hosted by Austrade. We held the roundtable on 29 August 2022. Its purpose was to inform the Australian Government’s Jobs and Skills Summit and the subsequent Employment White Paper.
Summary
The Austrade Skills Roundtable discussed:
- skills capability
- the role labour mobility plays in attracting, building and maintaining global businesses in Australia.
- It was an opportunity to gather business and industry insights on:
- skills in shortage and the impact on business and investment
- mobile workforces: needs of global companies
- barriers to mobility and impact on business operations and investment
- training and capability: investing in the Australian workforce.
The document captures issues, insights and proposed solutions from the roundtable. It was used to inform our engagement with the Jobs and Skills Summit on 1-2 September 2022. It will be drawn upon as part of the upcoming Employment White Paper process.
Key issues
Issues explored in the roundtable included:
- supporting staff movement needed to operate global businesses
- making visa offerings and timeframes attractive and competitive
- keeping occupation lists in step with economy and business needs
- identifying sector-specific issues
- skilling the domestic workforce for new and emerging industries
- tapping into marginalised labour sources
- ensuring our business environment allows continued investment
- promoting national priorities to attract investment and a talented workforce.