AWU: Shearer shortage, Pacific Islander worker visa downplayed by union

The AWU has drawn the ire of the shearing industry by claiming shearer numbers are fine as they are and wool growers want to exploit overseas workers.

A plan to use Pacific Islanders for shearing has raised the ire of the industry’s union which has deemed it a means of “a steady pipeline of easily exploitable workers”.

The Weekly Times last week reported Australian Wool Innovation’s plans to use its Conargo farm to train Pacific Islanders to work as shearers and shed hands due to a shortage of 1000 workers.

But the Australian Workers Union said it was not convinced there was any shortage and there was an ulterior motive for the move.

Australian Wool Innovation chair Jock Laurie stressed availability and timelines as one of the key issues affecting shearer numbers.

AWU national secretary Dan Walton said the flock had been shorn “right through the Covid pandemic and it can be shorn now”.

“Despite ongoing claims by the Shearing Contractors Association of Australia and some woolgrowers of a labour shortage, the fact is the Australian flock has been shorn year after year,” Mr Walton said,

“The Shearing Contractors and the same wool growers just don’t want to pay the current market rate, which is 15 per cent above the award, simply because they have not been able to flood the market with cheap labour.

“They should stop looking overseas and instead work to attract Aussie workers by offering fair pay and conditions and proper training.”

Mr Walton said just one shearing contractor had applied to become an approved Pacific Island Labour Mobility scheme employer and the union would be “closely looking at this approved employer/contractor to ensure they are properly training these workers”.

The union’s reaction has been met with anger by WoolProducers Australia chief executive Jo Hall who said it was “laughable” that wool growers wanted to exploit overseas workers.

“The AWU continues to show their ignorance when it comes to the wool harvesting industry,” Ms Hall said.

“The shearer shortage is very real – claims by the AWU that all sheep have been shorn, completely ignores the fact that there have been significant delays in engaging shearing teams which have led to animal welfare, management and wool quality issues, with many sheep just not being crutched at all.

“Paying below award rates has never been an issue in the shearing industry and in pre-pandemic times our industry was heavily reliant on overseas workers, so to suggest that woolgrowers are seeking labour from overseas to ‘exploit’ is an absolute fallacy.”

Ms Hall said highlighting the fact that only one shearing contractor had registered interest in the PALM scheme “shows ignorance or wilful misrepresentation or both by the AWU, as the issue is the scheme in its current form has limited applicability to the industry, hence the limited interest”.

Australian Wool Innovation chairman Jock Laurie said timing of management practices like shearing and crutching on each individual farm were critical.

“Availability of staff to meet these timelines, as has happened historically, is extremely important,” Mr Laurie said.

“AWI has been and will continue to provide training to people who are keen to enter the industry, whether they reside in Australia or come to this country on a government approved scheme. “

Mr Laurie said staff shortages were not confined to the shearing industry and could be seen across agriculture, and in the broader economy.