Work in Aus’ mission is to help solve Australia’s labour shortage

Tech Talks returns! This time Andrew Rodger, Founder of recMate is joined by Brian Schroder of Work in Aus, this year's winner of the talent pitch.

If you’re not familiar with the RCSA x recMate Tech Talks series, this collaboration forms a community forum that will pose ideas and inspiration for recruitment and staffing tech tools. In this session, Andrew and Brian discuss how Work in Aus can assist with the mass of unemployment in Australia.

Having spent 20 years working in the recruitment space, exiting Anderson Partnership as CEO, and then launching Work in Aus with 2 other co-founders, Brian knows a thing or two about recruitment in Australia.

For employers and recruiters, Australia is facing critical shortages in all industry sectors, with our lowest unemployment rate in history. Between December 2019 and December 2021, Australia also lost nearly half a million people from our shores. We’re seeing the highest number of job ads in decades alongside historic lows in job applications. 

Work in Aus’ mission is to help solve Australia’s labour shortage by connecting employers and recruiters with international job seekers. They’ve created a destination site where employers and recruiters can find people traveling to Australia to live and work, and where international talent can find Australian employers willing to hire them. 

For international job seekers, as countries open up, we know how difficult it can be to get clear, easy, accessible information to support a working holiday or even a bigger move overseas. They’re there to help make traveling to, and living and working in Australia that much easier.

Some scary stats:

• Unemployment rate 3.5%
• Participation rate 66.8%
• Employment 13,599,300
• Employment to population ratio 64.4%
• Underemployment rate 6.1%
• Monthly hours worked flat to 1,856 million

Brian stated that the biggest take away from those numbers is almost 500,000 job adverts online in Australia and ironically 500,000 visa holders that left from the period dec 2019 - dec 2021. So the real push for work is to get candidates into Australia that were eligible to hold the visas in past years.

A great challenge for our market to have at the moment, such low numbers in terms of unemployment levels. High demand spring curves were still experiencing. Now july 2022 lots of talk globally about changes in the economy. Aus has not seen big drastic change here yet from recent discussions, things will hold steady for quite some time. 

When you're in the 3rd percentile it makes it hard for the economy to act normally whilst our industry plays catchup with people missing from the workforce out there. 

Hospitality, healthcare, aged care, child care, etc. are often severely impacted by low employment levels and are usually supplemented by international workers for a work holiday visa or longer stay.

That’s where Work in Aus comes in. The mission is to help solve the labour shortage - a new job platform which promotes opportunities for Australian employers and recruiters. 

Work in Aus is the first stop for international talent visiting Australia. Via the platform eligible candidates can easily find Australian employers willing to hire international candidates. 

Work in Aus actively advertises roles in the UK and Ireland, attracting people travelling to Australia or international talent already here in the county. 

“Our view is that borders shouldnt be barriers and we know more talent is out there. Your journey starts with a destination and that destination is Work in Aus. “

Work in Aus found a gap in the market which enables employers and recruiters to reach an alternative labour pool that most job boards internationally have dismissed in the past in order to focus on domestic market places. 

After Work in Aus commissioned a survey with YouGov from a sample of 1300 UK and Irish residents aged 21-35, they found that that pool of potential candidates they are working with is 8M people.

• 2 in 3 (68%) would consider travelling to Australia - in contrast to the narrative in the general press.
• 1 in 6 (16%) would consider going in the next 1-2 years.
• 7% (~750,000 - ¾ million people) would leave now if given a good enough opportunity.

“By focusing on marketing to overseas nationals that want to change, travel and adventure. Statistics we have received from the registers we've commissioned say that the vast majority of those who travel will work to support travel. So the target market is initially those 21-35 with no kids, who can get on a plane tomorrow - come into the country on a working holiday visa, of which 50% are granted in a day. The platform integrates video, immmigration and job advertising and we’re really excited to see how we can help solve the labour shortage.”

Brian and the team at Work in Aus have created an all in one, modern twist on a traditional job board.

Especially now with the changing landscape of immigration, agendas and visas, it can be a minefield for candidates to know where to begin. Work in Aus are heading for partnership with the Migration Institute of Australia, with plans to provide a secure marketplace where recruiters and employers can advertise and educate on sponsorships and the immigration process along with educating job seekers on simple routes, like the working holiday visa or student pathway. Taking the strain off recruiters and providing holidaymakers with accurate and detailed information, advice and support - Sounds like a win-win situation to us!