NT’s Vanuatu mango picking workforce under threat as Pacific nation yet to sign off on program
THE arrival of critical mango pickers bound for the NT from Vanuatu is under threat
Northern Territory
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THE arrival of critical mango pickers bound for the NT from Vanuatu is under threat, with the government of the Pacific nation still deliberating if it will allow the workers to leave the coronavirus-free country.
The Vanuatu government is due to make a final decision on whether or not it will allow 170 of its citizens to fly to the NT for the mango picking season as part of a federal government pilot program this coming week. It’s understood most of Vanuatu’s government ministers are against the plan.
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The country’s state of emergency laws, in place due to the pandemic, do not allow workers to leave Vanuatu for seasonal work.
This comes after an initial bureaucracy-induced delay on Australia’s end, with NT Farmers chief executive Paul Burke saying at the time that the initial date of August 20 had been pushed back to September 1. Mr Burke could not be reached for comment on Saturday but NT Mango Industry Association boss Leo Skliros said the much-needed Vanuatu workers would need to touch down in Darwin for two weeks of quarantine by mid-September or the situation will be critical.
Foreign Affairs Minister Marise Payne is understood to be leading Australia’s side of the dialogue with Vanuatu to reach a solution. Her office was contacted for comment yesterday. The federal government’s pilot program has been spruiked as a solution to labour shortages in the Territory brought on by international border closures.
NT’s mango industry needs more than 2000 seasonal workers to pick the annual crop, which injects on average $120 million into the economy each year.
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“The Australian government is focused on ensuring our farmers and other critical industries have access to the labour force they need,” a spokesperson from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade said.
“We will continue to work with Vanuatu as well as other countries in the Pacific and Timor-Leste to restart labour mobility programs.”
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