Bush Summit: Wool workers’ win is sheer bliss
Working in a woolshed is the definition of hard yakka but NSW shearers are reaping the unexpected rewards of a national shearer shortage.
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Working in a woolshed is the definition of hard yakka but NSW shearers are reaping the unexpected rewards of a national shearer shortage.
Australia’s wool industry usually depends on shearers who cross the ditch from New Zealand on seasonal contracts, but Kiwi workers have been locked out because of the pandemic ban on overseas travel.
Willshear Hay shearing contractor Lionel Garner operates his business in Hay, NSW and said he lost “nearly half” of his contractors as they were unable to travel from New Zealand.
Mr Garner said he’d “struggled” to find enough shearers for the Riverina region farms he shears for and said the wool industry was “dependent” on international shearers due to low local numbers.
“I normally hire 30 blokes to run around and shear this time of year for nine months or so, but this year I’m lucky to have 17 or 18, we rely on the Kiwis coming across for our sheep,” he said.
“It’s not viable for me to pay for a fortnight of quarantine for them, it works out $10000 a man, I’ve got local shearers but there’s not enough local shearers either, so it’s a real problem.”
But despite the Australian Bureau of Statistics reporting a 13 per cent decline in shearing jobs in the past five years local workers are ready to step up and fill the gap in the true blue industry.
After restarting its introductory shearing course in the wool heartland Hay last year, TAFE NSW saw a number of graduates from the fortnight-length course become full time shearers.
TAFE agriculture teacher Tim Carroll said the course gave prospective students a “hands on experience” of the shearing lifestyle and had sent newly qualified shearers into the industry “with all the right skills”.
Mr Carroll said sheep shearing could be a lucrative option for pandemic job seekers who aren‘t afraid of a hard day’s work.
“The lack (of overseas shearers) has created so many job opportunities for people ready and willing to do shearing,” Mr Carroll said.
“Sheep are being shorn more than once a year now due to market demand so we definitely need more shearers. It’s hard work but it’s about getting the technique right.”
“We cover everything from crutching, shearing technique, animal welfare and wool pressing … it’s hard work but it’s all about getting the technique right, you’ll know quickly if it’s not right for you but it’s an honest job.”
Bailee Graham graduated from TAFE NSW’s introductory shearing course last year after two weeks of study and practical learning in Hay.
Wool classer, roustabout and newly qualified shearer Ms Graham 23, from Kerang said the current shearer shortage left her “spoiled for choice” when it came to job options.
“It’s been good for us locals, normally in winter I have to find a different job because it’s too slow when the contractors and seasonal hires take a lot of the work, but this year it’s all just falling in front of me,” Ms Graham said.
“Shearing’s tough on your body and there’s still stigma against female shearers, farmers don’t think we’re as tough as the blokes … but it’s a great job and very rewarding, I’d tell anyone to give it a go.”