The jobs no one wants: Farmers say they can't get Australians 'off the couch' to pick fruit despite surging unemployment
- Farmers say they will run out of workers this year because of border closures
- Deputy National leader said Australians generally don't to do want farm work
- The unemployment rate is forecast to reach 10 per cent because of COVID-19
Farmers have warned they will run out of workers this year, despite soaring unemployment due to the coronavirus crisis.
An online meeting discussing the labour shortage was held between state and territory agriculture ministers on Wednesday.
Deputy Nationals Leader David Littleproud said after the meeting that finding a solution was a top priority but it may not be easy because Australians don't want to do farm work.
Despite soaring unemployment rates amid the coronavirus crises, farmers say they will run out of workers this year
The farming industry has relied on overseas workers to pick and pack their crops for supermarket shelves
'There's a real aversion from the Australian workforce to go and pick fruit. Even when the dole was $550 a fortnight, we couldn't get people off the couch to go and pick fruit,' Mr Littleproud told the ABC.
He said that the farming industry has relied on overseas workers to pick and pack their crops for supermarket shelves.
When Australia shut its borders in March this year amid the growing coronavirus pandemic there were more than 140,000 backpackers and more than 7,000 Pacific Islanders with working visas in the country.
However, those numbers have almost halved in under six months.
In addition, despite the unemployment rate forecast to reach 10 per cent as industries struggle to deal with lockdowns and border closures, the farmers say they will still not be able to source workers.
'Australians have not wanted to do it, particularly when we've doubled Newstart and we've got JobKeeper, it's a very hard incentive to get someone off the couch to travel a couple of thousand kilometres to pick fruit for six weeks,' Mr Littleproud said.
The national unemployment level is currently at 7.4 per cent - the most elevated since November 1998.
Treasury is now expecting the national jobless rate to hit 9.25 per cent by the end of December - a level unseen since September 1994 during the long aftermath of Australia's last recession.
The unemployment rate is forecast to reach 10 per cent (pictured; People are seen in a long queue outside a Centrelink office in Brisbane, Tuesday, March 24, 2020)
A worker picks ripe red papaya from trees in an orchard at the Skybury Coffee Pty papaya plantation in the Atherton Tablelands, Queensland, Australia
In June million people were officially unemployed, with plenty more giving up looking for work.
Without JobKeeper wage subsidies, Australia last month had an effective unemployment rate of almost 11 per cent, Treasury economists said.
Farmers are concerned that not just the international border closures are set to affect the rural workforce, with New South Wales and Queensland refusing to let seasonal fruit pickers and shearers from Victoria across state lines.
National Farmers Federation CEO Tony Mahar this week urged Australians to consider farm work, saying that in some cases workers could earn up to $1,000 a week.
Mr Littleproud said the government was looking at international solutions because it was not confident Australians would step up to take on farm work.
Share this article
In April, the federal government allowed Pacific Islanders already in the country to extend their working visas.
The next step, according to the National MP, was to try to reach agreements with countries that have successfully controlled COVID-19 to allow temporary workers.
'My cabinet colleagues and I are working through the diplomatic channels to try and get some more solutions to try and give us even more comfort,' he said.
Mr Littleproud said the government was looking at international solutions because it was not confident Australians would step up to take on farm work
