Untapped potential: Matching migrant skills to jobs could boost Australian economy by $10bn

A new study has revealed about half of arrivals to Australia have skills that are being wasted and qualifications going unrecognised — costing the nation billions.

Better matching existing migrants in Australia to jobs that use their skills and qualifications could benefit the economy by more than $10 billion over five years, a new study has found.

The study, commissioned by migrant and refugee settlement agency AMES Australia, shows that about half of arrivals to Australia have skills that are being wasted because they are not recognised or they struggle to connect to local job networks.

A new study shows about half of arrivals to Australia have skills see their skills go wasted. Picture: Bloomberg

This could see them take up low-skilled work, such as driving taxis, rather than continue to work in areas of skills shortages such as engineering or medicine.

The report’s co-author, economist Dr Ian Pringle, said there were skills shortages across many sectors of the economy and industries crying out for more staff.

“Instead of arguing about what the migrant intake level is, maybe we should be trying to

better leverage the skills and qualifications of migrants and refuges who are already here or

who are part of the current intake levels,” he said.

The study found that supporting new arrivals to re-establish professional careers in Australia could generate more than $2.5 billion in extra tax receipts as well as an extra $8 billion in earnings pumped into the economy.

Supporting new arrivals to re-establish professional careers in Australia could see an extra $8 billion in earnings to be pumped into the economy. Picture: Alex Coppel.

The extra access to skills could also produce a ten per cent spike in productivity.

The Skilled Professional Migrant Program is one way that people are reconnected to their qualifications, and has helped 77 per cent of participants find work within six months.

A whopping 91 per cent of participants re-entered their specialist field within two years

of completing the program, which costs about $1000 per student to deliver.

AMES Australia CEO Cath Scarth said early intervention and programs that connect migrants with career pathways “can have a huge impact” for relatively low investment.

Early intervention and programs are assisting migrants in reconnecting with their qualifications and re-enter their specialist fields.

Medical scientist Dr Mohammad Alshawsh, who struggled to resume his professional career in Australia, was able to get a job at Monash University after finishing the SPMP course, which

helped him “learn more about the Australian job market”.

“When I arrived, I had no idea about Australian workplaces,” he said.

Vietnamese migrant Anh Booth, who had worked in senior roles for global fashion giants such as Gap, Banana Republic, and Victoria’s Secret before taking a career break to raise

her children, said she was knocked back from almost 150 jobs in Australia before doing the SPMP course and landing a role at uniform supplier Stewart and Heaton.