Business Insider is reporting that “it’s now easier than ever for hot tech talent to move to Australia”, thanks to the Turnbull Government’s new Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa, which offers and endless pool of low-paid migrant workers for the IT industry:
Australian innovators are officially on the hunt to lure top tech talent after the Turnbull government’s new visa pilot program was switched on yesterday…
The GTS is a 12-month trial established to allay concerns from the tech industry that the TSS was far too limitied, notably that it would “significantly condense” the occupation list used for 457s, tighten English language requirements, and, under the short-term stream, allow just one onshore visa renewal…
The GTS allows visas for up to four years to be offered, and the chance to eventually apply for permanent residency.
Crucially, it axes the list of occupations covered in the TSS entirely.
Alex Gruszka, COO of StartupAUS, said the specialised start-up focused stream of the GTS “has the potential to provide some serious relief for startup founders”.
The startup stream offers access to five visas per year for authorised startups.
The visas have a lower salary threshold, the ability to use equity and other benefits to reach that salary and a path to permanent residency…
The Home Affairs fact sheet about this scheme notes that an applicant must have “at least 3 years work experience directly relevant to position” and sets a minimum annual earnings threshold of just $53,900, which is well below the median full-time Australian salary of $65,572 (which includes unskilled workers).
So basically, this scheme will enable the IT industry to continue importing cheap foreign labour from the sub-continent with the carrot of permanent residency, and in the process undercutting local workers.
How can such low level, low skilled imports possibly be couched as vital to the sector?
