Jobseekers unmoved by relocation payment incentives

Unemployed Australians are being urged to take up relocation incentives, with only 197 out of 1.5 million jobseekers claiming the payment last year.

Employment Minister Michaelia Cash. Picture: Gary Ramage

Unemployed Australians are being urged to take up relocation incentives worth up to $9000 to move for jobs, with only 197 out of 1.5 million jobseekers claiming the payment last year.

The relocation assistance payments, which range between $3000 and $9000, were made easier to access late last year after the Morrison government changed eligibility requirements to support more Australians into work.

With the May budget set to prioritise jobs, skills and training, the government is telling Australians on the jobactive program they will be financially supported if they move towns, cities or interstate to take up jobs.

Days after Scott Morrison listed job creation as a key government priority this year, Employ­ment Minister Michaelia Cash said “we need many more Australians to consider moving for work to fill the gaps”.

The agricultural sector has been one of the hardest hits by ­labour shortages, driven by falls in international seasonal workers, with industry estimates of a 26,000 shortfall.

Temporary changes to the Relocation Assistance to Take Up a Job program have removed a requirement that jobactive participants must wait 12 months before accessing the scheme.

The Australian can reveal take-up of the program last year was the worst since it was launched in 2014.

“The changes we made to the allowance late last year are showing positive signs, but we need many more Australians to consider moving for work to fill the gaps,” Senator Cash said. “This year, workforce challenges will be one of the biggest economic challenges we face as a nation.

“We need jobseekers to do their part, too. Consider looking for work in areas where real shortages are occurring, to gain work and help Australia’s economic ­recovery.”

She said like all recoveries, “the return of the labour market has not been uniform … In many parts of the country, we are seeing real shortages of workers.

“In 2020, just 197 jobseekers took up assistance to relocate for work, the lowest number in six years. We need that number to be substantially higher to fill the jobs in demand and get our economy back on track.”

The relocation assistance scheme covers those moving intra­state and interstate.

Job seekers can access up to $6000 if they move into regional areas and $3000 for shifting to capital cities. Australians on the jobactive program can receive up to $9000 if they are moving for work with dependants.

A key factor driving demand for Australians to move for jobs has been fuelled by the drop-off in access to international seasonal workers.

Liberal MP Julian Leeser, chair of the joint standing committee on migration, said the government was also focused on ensuring pre-COVID levels of skilled migrants entering the country could be restored and serve “Australia’s needs now and into the future”.

With more than 100,000 migrants entering Australia annually under the skilled migration program before the pandemic began, Mr Leeser said it was critical to have the most attractive settings in place to attract the best global talent.

The migration committee on Wednesday launched an inquiry into how to attract entrepreneurs, venture capitalists and highly skilled migrants to “make Australia their first choice to invest, establish businesses and create jobs”.