The Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) is calling on the Federal Government to scrap the proposed ballot for second and third-year Working Holiday Maker visas and to protect travellers already in Australia, warning that some of the Townsville venues packed with football fans tonight could not operate without them.
QTIC has heard from restaurants and pubs in Townsville where Working Holiday Makers make up as much as 60 per cent of the workforce. Close to 25,000 fans are expected at Queensland Country Bank Stadium tonight for the CommBank Socceroos and Brazil, one of the biggest sporting events ever hosted in North Queensland, with accommodation across the city reported to have sold out before match tickets were even available.
Under changes announced by the Federal Government on 17 September, second-year Working Holiday Maker visas will be capped at 45,000, down from 57,000, and third-year visas at 5,000, compared with around 31,000 people who qualified this year. Both will be allocated by ballot, meaning a traveller who completes the required 88 days or six months of regional work would earn only a place in a draw, not a visa. No start date has been announced.
QTIC CEO Natassia Wheeler, who is in Townsville for the match this evening, said the changes put regional Queensland’s biggest opportunities at risk.
“If these changes go ahead as they stand, some of the venues fans are heading to tonight simply won’t have the staff to pull a pint,” Wheeler said.
“Landing a match like this is a huge win for Townsville. Kicking an own goal on the workforce that makes it happen would be a real shame.”
Allan Pike, owner of Townsville’s CBar, said more than half of his workforce were Working Holiday Makers, and that businesses right across the city were facing the same challenge.
“Working Holiday Makers are essential to running a hospitality business in Townsville. More than half my team are here on a working holiday, and I’m hearing the same thing from just about every venue in town,” Mr Pike said.
“Nights like tonight are what we plan our whole year around. Without these workers, we simply wouldn’t be able to make the most of opportunities like this, and it’s the busy nights that carry us through the quiet ones.”
QTIC is calling on the Federal Government to:
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Remove the ballot: Replace the proposed ballot for second and third-year visas with a clear process that gives travellers and businesses certainty of outcome.
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Look after those already here: Let Working Holiday Makers who are already in Australia, including those part-way through their regional work, apply for their next visa under the rules that were in place when they arrived, rather than being pushed into the ballot.
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Plan for the opportunities ahead: Work with industry to ensure workforce settings support regional events, Brisbane 2032 and the investment already committed across Queensland.
QTIC acknowledges that the Government is seeking to bring net overseas migration down but in doing so, we must ensure there is no ballot and working holiday makers have certainty.
“A lottery is no way to pick a team. If someone has done the work in a regional community, they deserve to know where they stand, and so does the business that has rostered them for summer.
“The people already here have been working in our pubs, hotels, airports, cafes and tour operations and contributing to our communities and our economy. They’ve played by the rules, and you don’t move the goalposts halfway through the game.”
Wheeler said big events were a lifeline for regional operators heading into the quieter months.
“Nights like this are how regional businesses bank the good times to get through the tough ones. The off-season, weather cancellations and cyclone season are all ahead of us. A big event can be what keeps a business open when the bookings dry up.
QTIC is working with the Australian Tourism Industry Council and state and territory Tourism Industry Councils on a coordinated national response. Queensland operators who want to register the impact on their business are encouraged to sign the petition and write to their local Federal Member.
