Australian Immigration Daily News

By Michael Jeremy RMA, and Evie Kennedy

The latest Australian Taxation Office Statistics highlights a significant pay gap between Australia’s richest and poorest neighbourhoods. On average, there is an income difference of $155,823 between the richest and the poorest postcode.

A large amount of Australia highest earners fell within the 2027 postcode, which includes Sydney’s Edgecliff, Rushcutters Bay, Point Piper and Darling Point. The professions that garnered the highest taxable incomes included Medical specialists, judges and lawyers, mining engineers and financial dealers.

The lowest median income area fell within postcode 2403, was also found in New South Wales and includes Myall Creek, Delungra and Gragin. These are all small communities.

It’s of note that Central West and Northern Inland NSW also have significant agricultural, animal production, mining, tourism and education industries.

Interestingly, six out of the top ten richest postcodes were in inner and eastern Sydney, New South Wales.

Seven out of the top ten lowest income postcodes were in regional New South Wales.

I have done quite a bit of immigration work in regional New South Wales and I can confirm that large areas of New South wales operate on lower wage and lower cost structures than exists.

It’s been evident to me for a while that skilled immigration programs or employment driven programs do discriminate against regional areas of Australia in that these programs focus on:

• Dated definitions of what a “skilled occupation” is and lacking understanding that in smaller regional communities “essential labour” is just as important.

• Minimum market salary requirements that are easily met in high-wage areas of Australia but less easily met in lower wage areas.

• An urban centric understanding of commercial realities and production process federal government employers may have never been out of an urban centre or capital city.

One of the most telling examples I have seen of lack of understanding of regional New South Wales was a federal employee who confused a combine harvester with a vacuum cleaner.

The ABS statistics published today highlight that individuals can earn significant incomes and live in desirable areas of global cities. The same statistics also demonstrate that Australia’s regional areas within its 6.7million kms deserve consideration in themselves.