Most Australians Agree Migrants Help Fill Skills Shortages

58% of respondents said the greatest benefit of migrants living and working in Australia is their targeted role in filling skills shortages,this was a multiple-choice question, and 54% also noted that migrants bring cultural diversity.

Meanwhile, only 33% believed that migrants merely fill low-skilled jobs that Australians are unwilling to do.

The Vast Majority Believe Migrants Who Live and Work Here Long-Term Deserve Permanent Residency

Temporary migrants living in Australia long-term far outnumber permanent residents; they work, live, and study here just like anyone else — in a broad sense, they are all migrants,and the vast majority of respondents either strongly agreed or agreed that they deserve to stay.The three questions in the survey image all carry a similar sentiment:

“Migrants who are already living and working in Australia, regardless of their visa type, shouldhave a clear pathway to settle here permanently. ” 28% strongly agreed, 39% agreed.

“If someone has already been living and working in Australia for many years,they should be given a pathway to permanent residency. ” 37% strongly agreed, 42% agreed.

“Migrants who are already living and working in Australiashould be given the stability to plan their future lives.” 36% strongly agreed, 42% agreed.

On a related question,only 26% of respondents believed that migrants should only work for an employer in Australia on a fixed-term temporary visa.

Looking more closely at the question “If someone has already been living and working in Australia for many years, they should be given a pathway to permanent residency” — let’s break it down by the major states,New South Wales and Victoria had the highest levels of agreement, with combined ‘strongly agree’ and ‘agree’ responses exceeding 80% in both states.

David Burke, Legal Director of the Human Rights Law Centre, says everyone should have the opportunity to plan their lives with a degree of security,but the federal government’s visa system leaves people in a constant state of uncertainty, and even after years of living and working here, they are often unable to reunite with their families.

These results show thatAustralians are well aware of this policy injustice,and that a visa status alone can push their neighbours, colleagues, and friends into a state of uncertainty.

Furthermore, the past two years of the pandemic disrupted the Australian government’s ability to reform its migration model,as the lockdowns drastically reduced migration of all kinds.

A November report from the Migrant Workers Centre also criticised the unhealthy imbalance within Australia’s migration system,“Australia’s migration system has lost its balance. The government issues unlimited numbers of temporary visas while strictly controlling the number of permanent visas. As a result, most migrants are forced to jump from one temporary visa to another until they are completely exhausted.”

The exploitation of migrants while they hold temporary visas has long been acknowledged, yet the issue remains unresolved,and the precariousness of their visa status is a key reason for this,The Migrant Workers Centre found through its research that migrants who already have a pathway to permanent residency are far less likely to be exploited at work.