What is the PALM
scheme?
The Pacific
Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme enables
eligible employers to hire workers from participating countries to fill
specified roles. These roles incorporate unskilled, low-skilled and
semi-skilled positions in rural and regional Australia, and agriculture sector
jobs nationally. Approved employers can hire workers for seasonal positions for
up to 9 months at a time or for longer-term roles for between 1 and 4
years, where not enough local workers are available.
Countries participate in the PALM scheme by entering into
a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Australia. Participating countries are
Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste,
Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) webpage
on Pacific Labour Mobility states that the scheme is intended to fulfil a
number of roles:
- providing
jobs and develops skills for workers
- allowing
them to support their families and communities at home
- allowing
employers to fill labour market gaps in regional Australia where it can be
difficult to source a reliable workforce.
The webpage states ‘Pacific labour mobility also helps
create strong links between people, businesses, and communities, fostering
deeper connections between Australia and our neighbours’.
While the PALM scheme therefore has an economic role in
addressing the workforce needs of target industries and employers, it is framed
by international relations policy focused on the Pacific region and
Timor-Leste.
The scheme is managed by DFAT and the Department of
Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR). A service provider, the Pacific Labour Facility, is
contracted to manage administration of aspects of the program.
When did the PALM scheme start?
The PALM scheme took effect on 4 April 2022. It was
first
announced by the Morrison Government on 14 September 2021, with further
details released on 23 November 2021. However, it comes from a longer
history of labour and mobility programs in the Pacific region.
The PALM scheme merged the previously existing Seasonal
Worker Programme (SWP) and Pacific
Labour Scheme (PLS). The SWP was launched in 2012, following a pilot which
began in 2008. The SWP was modelled on New Zealand’s Recognised
Seasonal Employer scheme, which began in 2007. The PLS began on 1 July
2018, following a pilot program in
northern Australia. The short-term and long-term streams of the current PALM
scheme reflect the 2 previous programs.
How do workers participate?
Workers must hold a passport from one of the participating
countries. Each country’s government has a labour sending unit to help
select workers and prepare them for working in Australia. Employers can liaise
with the labour sending units to recruit workers. Applicants must be sponsored
by an employer and be endorsed by the Australian Government. They can then
apply for a visa in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility stream of the Temporary
Work (International Relations) visa (subclass 403). Workers must be aged 21
or over and meet criteria similar to other temporary visas, including having
adequate health insurance and meeting health and character checks.
Under the seasonal short-term stream of the scheme,
workers can work in Australia for up to 9 months in any 12-month period
before returning to their home countries, and can return to Australia in
subsequent years. Workers in the long-term stream can spend up to 4 years in
Australia, and must then spend 6 months outside Australia before returning on a
subsequent PALM visa. The visas permit multiple entry, meaning workers can
leave Australia and return while their visas are in effect.
Workers cannot apply for other visas (other than a
protection visa) while in Australia, except for short-term PALM visa holders
transferring to a long-term PALM visa, or long-term PALM visa holders applying
for a subsequent visa for a maximum of a 4-year stay.[1]
This means there is currently no pathway to permanent
residence under the scheme. The Government is proposing to introduce a Pacific Engagement visa,
a permanent visa open to citizens of selected Pacific Island countries through
a pre-application ballot process. The ballot would be open to PALM visa holders
in Australia. As at September 2023, the enabling legislation
had not passed the Parliament.
PALM scheme workers are currently not permitted to bring
family members with them. The Government has committed to amendments allowing
workers in the long-term stream to bring
family members, expected to start with a pilot program in late 2023 for 200
workers and their families, subject to supporting legislation
passing.
Under the previous employer arrangements, PALM workers
could only work for their sponsoring employer in the industry they were
recruited for. Following a pilot
scheme, ‘portability’ arrangements in the new Approved Employer Deed of
Agreement (introduced from 1 July 2023, see below) allow workers to transfer
between employers. However, a worker cannot initiate a transfer – this is
arranged between employers. The worker must give written consent and must not
be disadvantaged by the move.
How do employers participate?
Employers based anywhere in Australia can employ PALM
workers to undertake agricultural work. Work in other sectors must be located
in regional and rural areas.
Before being permitted to recruit workers under the PALM
scheme, employers, including labour hire companies, must become an Approved
Employer. This involves completing an online
application, signing an Approved
Employer Deed of Agreement with DEWR (previously with DFAT), and becoming a
temporary
activities sponsor with the Department of Home Affairs in order to sponsor
workers’ visas. There are also Employer
Guidelines under the Deed to assist employers to meet their obligations.
The process is intended to ensure employers are reputable and have the capacity
to fulfil their obligations under the program.
The latest Deed and Guidelines were introduced on 1 July
2023 and set out requirements for employers, including:
- recruitment
processes and labour market testing
- employment
conditions, including providing minimum hours and rates of pay
- providing
arrival and departure briefings for workers
- providing
accommodation and transport
- supporting
worker welfare and wellbeing, including skills development opportunities and
engagement in the local community
- health
and safety measures.
Employers are required to pay some of the worker’s upfront
costs, such as visa charges and travel to Australia (unless a worker elects to
pay themselves). They may deduct some costs, including travel costs over $300,
from the worker’s wages once employment begins. Employers may seek Government
reimbursement where costs cannot be recouped from seasonal workers through no
fault of the employer.
What are the key debates around the
PALM scheme?
The PALM scheme differs from Australia’s other migration
initiatives in that it is aimed at low-skilled, rather than high-skilled,
employment and in its focus on a particular global region.
As noted above, the scheme aims to fill multiple roles.
Seasonal labour mobility has been described as a ‘triple
win’: for workers, for Australia as the host country, and for Pacific
Island countries. However, the PALM scheme is not without concerns and
controversies. Some of the key areas of debate on the benefits and challenges
of the scheme and its predecessors include:
Various amendments to the programs over their existence,
including in the new Deed and Guidelines as noted above, have attempted to
address some of these issues, but policy and implementation challenges remain
in balancing all aspects of the scheme’s objectives.
What happened to the Agriculture
visa?
The Morrison Government announced
the Australian Agriculture visa on 16 June 2021 and subsequently amended the Migration Regulations
1994 to introduce the ‘Australian Agriculture Worker stream’ within the
subclass 403 visa. The Agriculture visa was to be available for selected
southeast Asian countries, and the operation of the visa and the relevant
regulations were similar
to those for the PALM scheme (and previously the SWP and PLS). However, the
Albanese Government repealed
the Agriculture visa stream on 1 October 2022, acting on a commitment
to wind back the program and incorporate its key features into the PALM scheme.
Only Vietnam signed
an MOU with Australia under the Agriculture visa program, and while the
Government has stated it will honour
the arrangement, it has not yet been implemented.
Where can I find more information?
Latest statistics on participation in the PALM scheme are available
from the PALM website, updated approximately monthly. The latest update is
as at 30
June 2023. At that time, there were 39,644 PALM scheme workers in Australia
and 423 current Approved Employers. Long-term workers sent an estimated $168
million in remittances to their home countries between July 2018 and May 2023.
Short-term workers send an average $1,061 a month in remittances.
The PALM scheme website provides a range of resources,
including a ‘frequently asked questions’ fact
sheet on the 2023–24 Budget announcements noting recent and forthcoming
changes to the scheme. A more extensive ‘frequently asked questions’ page
is also available on the PALM scheme website.
Information is also available on the DEWR
website, in particular on the new employer Deed and Guidelines and
transition arrangements.