‘50 year low’: Crops dumped, restaurants closed as backpackers fail to flock back
Working backpackers haven’t returned to Queensland in the numbers hoped with farmers forced to dump crops and offering incentives to coax people back in.
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Working holiday makers haven’t returned to Queensland in the numbers hoped with produce, hospitality and tourism industries still down 80 per cent of their backpacker workforce.
When the temperatures dropped and production ramped up, backpackers once poured into the food bowls of the sunshine state eager to help with the picking and packing.
That hasn’t been the case this year with some farmers walking from crops to cut their losses.
Working holiday makers also propped up the tourism and hospitality industry, particularly in the holiday destinations of North Queensland where the workforce shortage is impacting trade.
“The lack of staff is forcing some businesses to operate five days a week instead of seven,”
Tourism Tropical North Queensland General Manager Rosie Douglas said.
The latest data from the Department of Home Affairs reveals just 23,000 working holiday makers were in Australia on March 31, down from almost 140,000 in late 2019 before Covid-19 arrived.
The numbers are only a slight improvement from December, climbing by 2.6 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, despite the international borders opening.
“It would be hard to recall a time in the last 50 years where we’ve had so few backpackers in the country,” said Growcom acting CEO Richard Shannon.
“It’s estimated that backpackers previously made up to 80 per cent of our workforce so when you remove so many backpackers from the country, we’re left with a huge hole in terms of our workforce and our ability to harvest fruits and vegetables.”
The Australian Government last month implemented reforms to address worker shortages including consolidating two visa schemes into one Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme known as PALM.
Queensland farms have also been offering competitive wages to retain local workers in a bid to fill the gap.
Nathan Baronio, from Eastern Colour in the Granite Belt, said producers bidding for workers was problematic and it was vital that Australia again attracted working holiday makers to diversify the workforce.
The apple and strawberry farmer said he had heard of desperate producers poaching backpackers with incentives and “promising them the world” to sway them to their corner of the country.
The PALM program propped up his workforce during recent apple production but he was still understaffed.
“This year we’ve also tried to be a bit smarter, walking away from blocks earlier, but that is probably contributing towards higher costs of produce at the moment,” Mr Baronia said.
“Producers endured last year’s labour shortage and decided they weren’t going to put themselves through that again, and grow less.
“The more producers who grow less, the higher and higher the prices at the supermarket.”
Mr Baronia said farmers would rather walk away from crops early than experience the “demoralisation” of dumping them at the last moment as many were forced to do in 2021.
Queensland Strawberry Growers’ Association Adrian Schultz was optimistic that working holiday makers would return to horticulture, but said the PALM scheme would likely remain an integral tool.
He said of the 23,000 working holiday makers who were in Australia in late March, many wouldn’t be heading to farms and instead completing their required work in other industries such as tourism and hospitality.
“There was a lot of networking going on prior to the pandemic and we never had to advertise- it was all by word of mouth as far as our working holiday makers were concerned,” Mr Schultz.
“I guess that networking isn’t happening now.
“Some people speculated that once they were allowed, we would have a flood of working holiday makers coming back to the country but I’m not 100 per cent as to why that hasn’t happened.
“There’s probably a bigger question there- why aren’t they coming back to Australia?”
Tourism and hospitality providers are asking the same question with Tourism Tropical North Queensland launching an international campaign to attract working travellers to the region.
The collaboration with travel company Global Work and Travel aims to connect businesses with international staff.
Ms Douglas said while backpackers were beginning to return, the industry needed more.
“Working holiday makers are a vital market for Tropical North Queensland as they stay as long as possible and are keen to try the many world-class experiences our destination has to offer,” she said.
Data from the Department of Home Affairs revealed 61,427 visas were granted under the Working Holiday Maker program from June 2021 to March.
Tourism Accommodation Australia CEO Michael Johnson expects a tough few months before those numbers provide relief for his accommodation and hospitality members.
He said islands, tourism regions and even Brisbane were struggling with the lack of travellers and reducing services.
“If you’re operating two or three restaurants, you might have to close one because you can’t staff them all, or you might have to close your pool bar,” Mr Johnson said.
“And some properties are capping occupancy so that they don’t disappoint the guests who are coming.”
Former Minister for Agriculture David Littleproud said working holiday makers were among the first international arrivals allowed back into the country in December.
“It will take a couple of years for the Working Holiday Makers Program to achieve the pre-pandemic numbers,” Mr Littleproud said.
Labor announced last month it would create a dedicated agriculture visa stream under the established PALM scheme, instead of the Coalition’s Ag Visa targeting workers from South-East Asia.
A Labor spokesperson said it was an opportunity to provide support for the Pacific Island nations and Timor Leste with 55,000 pre- screened workers ready to go.
“Labor’s Ag Visa is an incredibly important tool that farmers have been asking for, giving certainty and portability,” the spokesperson said.
“We support an uncapped visa, which is again what farmers have asked for.”
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