Australia Seeks Skilled South Africans to Fill Critical Job Shortage

Australia is grappling with a severe shortage of critical skills, prompting the nation to look beyond its borders for talent, including South Africans, to fill vacancies in its top five in-demand fields. According to the Australian government’s annual jobs and skills report for 2023, 36% of all occupations were in national shortage, a 5% increase from the previous year.

The shortage is even more acute among skilled professions, with nearly half (48%) of professional group occupations experiencing shortages in 2023, compared to 39% in 2022. This shortfall is attributed to sustained growth in full-time employment and a low rate of underemployment, indicating a highly utilised workforce with limited capacity to meet additional demand.

The Australian Skilled Priority List for 2024 highlights the most in-demand job sectors as healthcare, engineering, information technology (IT), and education. The higher proportion of professional group occupations in shortage is primarily driven by health and ICT professionals. The report states that over four in five health professional occupations (82%) are in shortage, while almost seven in ten ICT professional roles (69%) remain unfilled.

Government statistics reveal that 206,730 South African-born individuals reside in Australia, making them the seventh largest migrant community in the country. These migrants typically possess the skills, qualifications, and entrepreneurial spirit essential to the Australian economy, making South Africa a prime target for talent scouting.

Digital outsourcing and consulting firm Strider Digital attributes the outsourcing of South Africans to their high standard of education and experience, strong work ethic, diversity, and cultural compatibility. “South Africa is home to a highly educated and skilled workforce, with many individuals holding degrees in engineering, IT, software development, business, and marketing,” said Bjorn Annegarn, a business development consultant at Strider Digital. Annabel Dallamore, Strider Digital’s CEO, also noted the alignment of South Africa’s work culture with that of countries like the United Kingdom and Australia, emphasizing values such as collaboration, openness to diverse perspectives, and adherence to principles like punctuality and preparedness.

According to OECD data, the average South African works 43.3 hours per week, ranking fifth highest in the world. However, many workers exceed the maximum hours stipulated by labour laws.

ConsultANZ, an Australian consultancy firm, identifies construction managers, civil engineers, school teachers, nurses, and ICT business and systems analysts as among the most in-demand jobs over the next five years. These roles align with the primary jobs occupied by South Africans in Australia.

Australia’s Home Affairs statistics highlight the most popular professions among South African migrants, including secondary school teachers, pre-primary school teachers, civil engineering professionals, accountants, ICT business and systems analysts, and construction managers.

The Southern African Times examined the annual salary ranges for these highly sought-after positions, revealing that doctors can earn the highest salaries, followed by construction managers, engineers, and ICT business and systems analysts.

The table below lists the top four in-demand jobs within Australia’s most sought-after sectors, which are also actively filled by South Africans, along with their salary ranges:

The critical need for skilled professionals in Australia, coupled with the high standard of South African education and work ethic, continues to drive the migration and employment of South Africans in these key sectors.