Palmer backs skilled migrants plan

25 May 2012, 6:57 pm   -   Source: AAP
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Clive Palmer. (Getty)

Clive Palmer. (Getty)

Clive Palmer has backed the federal government, saying he firmly supports its decision to introduce enterprise migration agreements to ease skilled labour shortages.

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It's not often that Clive Palmer agrees with the federal government, but he's firmly backing its decision to introduce enterprise migration agreements (EMAs) to ease skilled labour shortages.

The mining magnate joined business groups including the Association of Mining and Exploration Companies (AMEC) and the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Western Australia (CCIWA) in applauding the move.

The first EMA to be signed was with Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting for its multi-billion-dollar Roy Hill iron-ore project in WA's Pilbara region.

While unions were livid, saying Australians would be robbed of jobs, Special Minister of State Gary Gray said they would simply have to put up with it because the decision had been made.

The EMAs were a mechanism to get up major projects that were significant to the national economy in time to meet a window of market demand, he said.

"The unions and other stakeholders have had their say and the government has made its call - end of story," Mr Gray told a business panel discussion in Perth.

"If we don't get this EMA in place, we won't get this project built on time and on budget.

"If we were to sit back ... the risk is that we will miss that market and we will end up in future generations with lots of rocks that no-one wants."

Mr Gray had a friend in Mr Palmer, who said it was important to support major resources projects with expected lives of 30 to 40 years because benefits would flow through to improve the nation's standard of living.

"If we don't do something like this, we won't have any jobs at all," Mr Palmer said.

"We need to get on with the job. We've got to get rid of all this bloody rubbish that stops us competing."

Liberal senator Eric Abetz also said he supported EMAs "in principle ... for the reasons Gary announced".

"We'll reserve judgment in relation to the fine print," Senator Abetz said.

Greens deputy leader Adam Bandt was a lone voice of dissent on the panel, saying he was concerned the foreign workers would build up their skills and then promptly leave Australia.

The CCIWA and AMEC said the new EMAs highlighted the scale of labour challenges facing the mining state, while the Australian Petroleum Production and Exploration Association said they would bring significant economic benefit to the nation.

AMEC also said it strongly supported the condition that EMA applicants had to demonstrate genuine attempts to employ Australians ahead of overseas workers.

While supportive, the Chamber of Minerals and Energy said it "had concerns around the prescriptive nature of some of the guidelines" and called for the process to be made more efficient.

The Migration Institute of Australia, representing migration service providers, said it understood the reservations of many unions and others with the Roy Hill deal, but such agreements had a place in Australia's future.

More than 1700 foreign workers will be allowed for the peak construction phase at Roy Hill, which needs 8000 workers to build.

Mr Gray said some of the 2000 people that Hancock Prospecting would train in exchange for being allowed to import workers would be covered by the EMA "but most will be Australian".

 

Mining , Enterprise Migration Agreements , Clive Palmer

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Your Comments

Greed

Warren P - from Perth, 1 year

Yeah he agrees with the government when there is another buck in it for him ,these mining greed merchants should be stripped of their ownership after all the resources here are for all Australians not a select few multi billionaires

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