Key Points
- An international student working in the aged care sector considers the extension of unlimited working hours a big deal to alleviate the cost of living.
- The federal government recently announced the new Aged Care Industry Labour Agreement, which aims to ease the recruitment of qualified care workers from other countries in the aged care sector.
- There is also a plan to increase wages by 15% from July for over 200,000 aged care workers.
PAKINGGAN ANG PODCAST:
International student na nagtatrabaho sa aged care, masaya sa pagpapalawig ng unlimited working hours
SBS Filipino
11/05/202307:22
The federal government's brought relief to international student Ciony Faustino from Melbourne.
Although this is effective only until December 31, 2023, she believes it is a significant development, especially with the news of a permanent residency pathway for aged care workers' applications.
I’m pleased about this announcement because I’m always thinking about surviving the cost of living here in Australia come July.
The federal government recently announced the making recruiting qualified care workers from other countries in the aged care sector easier.
Employers can use it if there are no qualified Australian citizens available. This means they can sponsor Temporary Skill Shortage subclass 482 visas for occupations such as nursing support workers, personal care assistants, and aged and disabled carers.
Overseas workers can also be sponsored for permanent residency under the Employer Nomination Scheme (subclass 186) visa program with two years of full-time work experience in Australia in the mentioned care occupations.
Before hearing this news, Ms Faustino planned to find another job related to her Diploma of Community Service studies. But now, she seems motivated to stay in the industry.
“I’m also looking for a job related to my course in Community Service since aged care has no pathway for Permanent Residency,” she said.
Ms Faustino is a licensed nurse in the Philippines who worked for four years in the country and two years in Saudi Arabia.
She plans to become a registered nurse in Australia, so she juggles her studies, work, and review for nursing registration.
International student Ciony Gulle-Faustino arrived in Melbourne last December 2022
There are days when she works from 7 am to 10 pm to save money for tuition and help her family in the Philippines. Due to high rent and basic necessities, she practices extreme frugality.
She is thrilled with the with personal care workers being the biggest beneficiaries.
If you are a registered nurse, it means $198 a week; that is life-changing money for people.Aged Care Minister Anika Wells
On the other hand, the National Director of Uniting Care Australia, Claerwen Little, insisted that more should be done for the long term.
She said, “Uniting Care Australia welcomes this Budget and highlights the importance of putting people at the heart of policy decisions. We welcome the many short-term measures that have been in the Budget tonight to alleviate the cost-of-living crisis that we're seeing across our country, to alleviate some of the pain that families are seeing and that single parents are seeing, and that older people are seeing in the households every day."
Disclaimer: This article is for general information only. For specific visa advice, people are urged to check with the
or contact a trustworthy solicitor or registered migration agent in Australia.
