Our ‘Pacific family’. Heroes, guests, workers or a precariat?

Abstract

Australia launched a Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) in 2012, shortly after a similar scheme in New Zealand, to bring seasonal workers from Pacific Island Countries (PICS) to work in agriculture. The scheme was seen as a potential ‘Triple Win' with sending and receiving countries, and workers' households, benefiting. Workers’ remittances contributed to welfare, especially housing and education, and small business establishment, but there were social costs associated with repeated absences. In 2018, Australia introduced the Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS) to extend guestwork opportunities into other areas of non-seasonal labour shortage such as aged care, tourism and meat processing. The shortage of local labour during COVID-19 demonstrated that Pacific guestworkers were invaluable to Australia, and in 2022 the schemes were revamped and expanded further as the PALM (Pacific Australia Labour Mobility) Scheme. Concern over a Chinese threat in the region gave further support for the expansion. PICs expressed concerns about exploitative practices, while higher rates of participation increased the potential for an incipient brain drain from the PICs, with wages roughly four times those at home, as migrants now left non-agricultural jobs. The expanded scheme continues to favour Australian employers leaving questions over, equity, uneven development and the future of the PICs.