Australia's engineering workforce migration statistics

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Created on Wednesday, 31 July 2013 16:20

Written by Editorial staff

On July 24, a policy note that discusses the permanent skilled migration of engineers to Australia was released. Compiled by Engineers Australia, it provides migration agents with some interesting statistics and highlights the important part skilled migration plays in Australia's engineering labour force

The policy note begins by stating that permanent skilled migration is not the solution to Australia's skill shortage problems.

However, it does provide the engineering workforce - and other skills areas "of greatest benefit to Australia" - with much-needed supplementation.  

Since 2000, the number of engineers entering the country on permanent migration visas has increased by around 16.6 per cent each and every year. This number did fall by 1 per cent in the year leading up to June 30, but 2012 still saw 8,585 engineers land on our shores.

There has been a shortage of engineers in Australia for over a decade, claims the policy note. This is the result of, among other things, falling numbers of students completing engineering courses - a trend that began around 2006.

The amount of people who are undertaking engineering courses in Australia has begun to increase in recent years, but there still aren't enough qualified engineers to meet demand.

That's where skilled migration comes in.

Employers suffering from skill shortages are often encouraged to sponsor a migrant worker for a temporary work visa, such as the 457 visa, and then decide if the employee is worth sponsoring for a permanent residency visa.

In both cases, the employer must guarantee the engineer they are planning to sponsor a job upon landing in Australia.

State or Territory governments can also sponsor skilled migrant workers, or "suitably qualified independent individuals" can apply for visas in occupations that are listed on the Skilled Occupation List (SOL).

There are a large number of engineering occupations on the SOL, because the demand for skilled workers in the sector is so high. In 2000-01, the number of permanent visas granted to people wishing to fill engineering positions listed on the SOL was 1,528. By 2012-13, this amount had risen to 8,585.

It seems that software engineers are the most in demand at present, with 2,167 out of the 8,585 permanent visas going to skilled migrant workers in this profession. In second place is civil engineering, with 1,025 people having their visa applications approved for such jobs in 2012-13.