Skilled occupations such as engineers, taxation accountants, barristers and solicitors are at risk of being removed from Australia’s 2016/17 skilled occupations lists (SOL), following advice from the Department of Education and Training to the Minister of Immigration and Border Protection.
The SOL is a compilation of occupations for skilled migration with the aim of meeting the medium to long-term skill needs of the Australian economy and is commonly used for non employer sponsored work visas such as the 189 or 489, rather than 457 work visas.
Each year, the Department of Education and Training undertakes a review of the SOL and if there is emerging evidence of excess supply in the labour market for a particular occupation, it is generally flagged for possible removal.
The Department of Education and Training receives submissions from bodies and organisations across the country to assess labour market conditions for the listed occupations. The Australian newspaper recently reported that GP’s, surgeons, anaesthetists and other occupations in the health industry are among 41 jobs pushed by the Federal Health Department for removal from the SOL.
The Health Department submission into the review of the SOL read, “Over a longer planning horizon, better management of migration pathways for international health professionals must occur in combination with all commonwealth departments’. The strategy would allow vacancies to be filled by local medical graduates, particularly in regional areas.
Source: SBS and Australia Forum.
