MORE workers may be on their way to region as the Victorian Government pushes for more visa places in regional Victoria.
The Victorian Government confirmed on Wednesday it would write to the Federal Minister for Immigration Alex Hawke requesting additional state-nominated visa places for regional Victoria.
Ms Cupper said the regions may have Mildura to thank for this push.
Before Christmas, Grand Hotel managing director Baljinder Sandhu brought to Ms Cupper’s attention the significant difference in the number of regional skilled visa workers requested by Victoria compared to other Australian states.
Ms Cupper said she told the government that of 4000 visa holders in Victoria, only 500 were required to work in regional Victoria.
“It’s a staggeringly low figure, as Tasmania gets 2200 regional placements a year, SA gets 2600 and NSW gets 3640,” she said.
“More places in the 491 visa program would be a windfall for our region, helping local businesses source the people needed across a wide range of occupations.”
The State Government said it would request additional skilled overseas workers to help combat worker shortages.
Ms Cupper hosted a worker shortage forum on Wednesday that provided an opportunity for her to inform business owners about government support they might not know about.
Ms Cupper said the forum also identified new ways the government could assist local businesses, including providing financial support to workers in industries that were subject to density limits and reviewing regulations for school-based apprenticeships with work hours outside normal business hours.
Ms Cupper said the government and departmental representatives who attended the forum were responsive to the ideas and were keen to explore them further.
“This is a crisis that was prompted by the pandemic, but local businesses say we cannot assume that it will go away when the pandemic goes away,” she said.
“We need to accept this will be a chronic problem that requires strong and sustainable interventions by government for the long term.”
