Wednesday, November 23, 2022

Australian Stripping Small Pacific Countries of Skilled Workers

An issue raised at the the Pacific Security Cooperation Workshop hosted at ANU in Canberra just now was Australia attracting highly trained staff from small pacific nations. The ABC reported "Pacific hospitals suffer nursing shortage as workers leave for Australia's labour scheme" (ABC Radio, 22 November 2022). This issue was taken up by other delegates at the workshop. 

Perhaps an ethical approach would be for the Australian government to compensate the countries the workers come from, for the cost of their upbringing, education and training (around $1M per worker). This would make for a more rational migration policy, rather than just using it for quick cheap labor. 

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