AUSTRALIA is facing a workforce crisis it’s never seen before. Job vacancies are approaching half a million, dragging business and economic growth down and fuelling a cost-of-living crisis. The hardest hit sectors include agriculture, hospitality, mining, tourism, and the caring industries. The Federal Government has raised the yearly permanent migration quota by 35,000 - but workforce shortages are not going to be solved by immigration alone. We need to boost participation and support people with limited income and savings to earn more. We also need to boost tax revenue to pay for health, aged care, and other social services. To fix these economic and socioeconomic challenges we must “let people work”.
