Latest migration figures intensify argument against imported labour

The latest migration statistics, provided to The Australian Financial Review by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship, show that more than half of the IT sector’s annual intake of 457 migrants for the last financial year came from India.

This has intensified pressure on government from unions and recruiters over the use of the 457-visa scheme to import labour at reduced costs.

The report indicated that the total number of Indian information technology professionals granted 457 visas had grown by 27% from 2790 visas in 2006/7 to 3840 for the financial year ending June 30, 2008.

By comparison, the numbers of temporary technology workers coming from Britain and the United States (the next most popular destinations) had declined or remained stable at a comparatively miniscule 470 and 220 respectively.

These totals include onshore and offshore 457 visa application grants for the categories: "computer professionals" and "applications and analyst programmers".

Migration experts and academics, including Bob Kinnaird and Bob Birrell, have warned that, if left unregulated, the 457 visa scheme could result in IT workers sourced from less prosperous nations outpricing their local peers. This could also impact negatively on undergraduate computer-related degrees.

Although it is common for many multinational software companies to retain large, highly mobile Indian workforces, technology industry groups have widely and persistently rejected claims of hidden labour arbitraging within the 457 visa scheme.

Some recruitment specialists maintain that most 457 visa holders brought in from India are hired to undercut Australian labour costs. They feel that government should be more transparent in announcing the names of organisations bringing in 457 visa holders, as well as the number brought in and citizenship country.

“While this type of transparency is important,” said Bruce Mills, Joint CEO of 3W Consulting Contracting & Recruitment Pty Ltd, “We would also benefit from a more focussed strategy which encourages responsible employer sponsored migration, while reducing the number of migrants entering the country without employment offers.”

An immigration department spokesman said that new legislation brought in by government last year allowed stricter control of minimum salary levels paid to 457 visa workers. It also enabled crosschecking of their actual remuneration through the Australian Taxation Office.

The spokesman also mentioned that if any evidence of technology employers abusing the 457-visa scheme was submitted, it would be properly investigated.