The changes to the 457 visa made earlier this year by the Turnbull government are causing headaches for companies and recruiters searching for top level talent.
One of the changes to the visa was tightening the age requirement so that applicants can’t be older than 45. However, many industries look overseas for candidates for their top tier positions, such as CEO. By the nature of Australia being a relatively small country, the pool of people with the experience and talent required is small.
This rings especially true in sectors such a medicine, where decades of experience are required. For our industry, while Australia produces many great chefs and hospitality leaders, the skills shortage means we often come up short. Not to mention that international experience goes a long way.
The age restriction is not the only challenge. With several jobs being removed from the eligibility list, some industries are facing skill gaps where they have previously been able to find workers overseas.
It will be interesting to see how the Australian job market handles the changes. Many are concerned that it will cause serious damage to some companies, who will have to settle for candidates that may not be as experienced as they would like. But who knows? Perhaps the landscape will flourish with fresh blood.