Migrants can struggle to get jobs

The Age reports migrants can find it extremely difficult to find work even though there are shortages.

Calls are growing louder to boost the number of skilled migrants to help solve our skill shortages. But migrants will only help stem shortages if they secure work in areas in which they are qualified. And many find that even in fields of supposed shortages, they are struggling to do this.

Migrants are not able to access unemployment benefits for their first two years in Australia. Unfortunately, this also means they can't be helped by Government-funded recruitment agencies like the Job Network.

On top of this, many jobs in Australia are highly regulated. Plumbers, electricians require Australian-recognized qualifications before they can operate.

An article on a job placements firm in New South Wales says basically the same thing: "Many migrants also face the problem of never having been exposed to Australian standards. This is a very legitimate reason for Australian employers to prefer candidates with relevant exposure to Australian standards". (Link to article)

If you are a migrant engineer, please share with us your experience here.