SHORT-TERM MIGRATION ‘FIXES’ A THREAT TO HOTELS

From the President

DAVID BASHEER

The next Federal Election has taken on added significance for AHA|SA members, as both major parties have targeted migration as key policy areas.

These policies have the potential to further reduce our employment pool.

To examine the need to future-proof our sector, projections are that Australia will require an extra 26,000 cooks and chefs alone over the next 10 years. Members fully understand we are not starting that journey form a strong base.

Additionally, we will require an extra 12,000 restaurant, accommodation and hotel managers - all of which are roles that are difficult to fill today.

Alarmingly for our industry, cooking apprenticeships have dropped below pre-Covid levels. In September 2023, there were only 2,760 new apprenticeships, compared to 4,255 apprenticeship commencements in September 2021.

The drop in traineeships in that period has been even greater.

What Needs To Be Done

As the gap in our labour force needs deepens, the AHA|SA believes that several critical measures are essential to prevent the inevitable black hole.

Up until 2017, employer-sponsored migrants - either temporary or permanent – were approved for virtually any occupation, provided there was a proven skill need. This programme was incredibly responsive to fill the skill gaps, particularly when it existed in local or regional areas.

As it stands today, the current criteria relies upon Canberra determining a list of assessed skill shortages that covers the entire nation.

And, as any member who has attempted to access this system quickly learns, it is a costly and complex process that lacks any employer certainty of a positive outcome.

The current ‘national-only’ approach discriminates against smaller cities like Adelaide, and absolutely against our regions.

Wages are likely to be lower in these regions, which hurts the migration criteria. But that fails to take into account this will still deliver similar economic outcomes for the immigrant, given cheaper rents and lower cost of living pressures.

Meeting our future work needs is not isolated to migration. We are suffering from the curious decision to remove the Governmentfunded apprenticeship and trainee incentives, along with the reduction in the number of publicly-funded students undertaking hospitality qualifications.

The AHA|SA would welcome a better linkage with schools, so training can commence in the school year, allowing apprentices to be completed at a younger age. And, as you would be aware, the AHA|SA has lobbied relentlessly for the four-year apprenticeships - a relic of a bygone era - to be modernised without ‘dumbing down’ the value of the qualification.

Backpackers

To make matters worse, the Federal Government has commenced consultation on scrapping the requirement for backpackers to work in regional areas for a minimum of 88 days.

This would deliver another major blow to country Australia that desperately needs to attract employees, not to mention the hole it will leave in small, regional economies.

On a more positive note, the Government has rejected a suggestion to cap the backpackers visa to only one year.

Finally, overseas students are an important part of our workforce. There is a mood to reduce this sector to a ‘more sustainable level.’

Not only are there moves to reduce visa numbers, but to place more barriers in place, such as increasing international visa fees from $710 to $1600, the highest in the world.

Some people seem to have forgotten that international students not only form an important part of our workforce, but also our tourism economy.

Study Adelaide have revealed 20% of seats on international flights are passengers visiting relatives. Admittedly, not all those relatives are students, but mum, dad, brothers and sisters visiting their family members are a huge part of that.

Of course, these family visitors don’t stay at the student accommodation halls or eat in their food areas. They book hotel rooms and restaurants during their stay.

Getting migration settings right offers both short-term - but more critically longer term - benefits in getting the system working for industry. The current ‘one size fits all’ approach is hurting, rather than assisting our labour crisis.

New Licensing And Gambling Commisisoner

Anna and I recently met the new Liquor and Gambling Commissioner, Martyn Campbell.

Martyn is an experienced regulator. In a career spanning nearly four decades, he has worked as a Detective Inspector with both UK and South Australian Police, and has been the Workplace Ombudsman, Assistant Commissioner at the Australian Taxation Office and Executive Director of SafeWork SA.

Our initial meeting with the Commissioner was a positive one, and we look forward to working positively with Martyn on a range of our key issues.

David Basheer, AHA|SA President

In this issue, we have combined the President's and CEO's videos to provide an extended overview of current issues. It is broken into chapters so you can skip ahead to the topics you are interested in. You’ll see the chapters in the timeline of the video when you hover your mouse over it, or by expanding the description.

Watch Video

Intro

00:42 - Record number of Corporate Partners

02:26 - Advocacy on Payroll Tax and reforms

04:25 - Upcoming State and Federal elections

05:22 - Beer excise and advocacy update

07:29 - United national accommodation voice

08:03 - Government funding for AHA|SA programs

10:48 - Tackling the hotels skills shortage

12:19 - Attracting more events into SA

14:12 - Leading the nation in minimising gambling harm

15:24 - Communicating with key decision makers