Published on Friday, 17 March 2023 at 3:37:48 PM
Great Southern businesses struggling to fill job vacancies will benefit from a service agreement endorsed today.
WALGA Great Southern Country Zone has engaged EY Consulting to develop a Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA) business case to submit to the Department of Home Affairs.
Under the proposed agreement, Regional Development Australia (RDA) Great Southern will perform the Designated Area Representative (DAR) role in administering the DAMA for a five-year period.
A DAMA is a formal labour agreement between the Australian Government and a regional authority to provide businesses access to more overseas workers than the standard skilled migration program.
WALGA Great Southern Country Zone President Chris Pavlovich said the DAR Service Agreement was a key step towards alleviating critical labour shortages across the region.
“Since the DAMA Working Group was established in August, it has reviewed other West Australian DAMA business cases and canvased businesses to ensure demand exists for occupations not currently included on the skilled immigration visa list,” Cr Pavlovich said.
“All 11 local governments in the Great Southern, the Great Southern Development Commission (GSDC) and RDA Great Southern have jointly funded the Great Southern DAMA business plan for submission to the Department of Home Affairs.”
“The formal DAMA application is anticipated to be lodged by July and, if successful, will allow local businesses to sponsor skilled overseas workers in specific industries that they have been unable to fill by advertising locally for a period of five years. Some of the occupations in demand include agriculture, transport, hospitality, and aged care providers.”
RDA Great Southern chief executive officer Simon Lyas said the organisation was pleased to contribute to the Great Southern DAMA.
“We look forward to providing the required services, including monitoring labour market trends, employer assessments, DAMA application endorsements, reporting and risk management on behalf of the region and reporting to the WALGA Great Southern Country Zone on a quarterly basis,” Mr Lyas said.
Cr Pavlovich thanked RDA GS, the GSDC and the local governments involved for their ongoing support to establish a DAMA for the region, on behalf of the Zone.
“The capacity for local businesses to secure adequate labour going forward will ensure our region continues to grow and prosper,” he said.
ENDS
For further information, please contact:
Shire of Plantagenet Communications Coordinator (08) 9892 1146 co@sop.wa.gov.au
RDA Great Southern (08) 6820 2800 research@rdagreatsouthern.com.au
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