Every year the Australian Government’s Department of Education and Training (DE&T) updates the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL). Prior to April 2017 this was known as the Skilled Occupation List (SOL). The current application and composition of this list in relation to engineering occupations is described in the News post of 6th August 2017. The DE&T submits the list to the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, who has the final say over which occupations are included or excluded. The DE&T also maintains a separate list of occupations which are ‘flagged’ for potential future removal from the MLTSSL. Until this year, the first criterion for ‘flagging’ an occupation was when there was emerging evidence of excess supply in the labour market. The ‘flagged’ list consisted of occupations in this category identified by DE&T, as well as occupations which were recommended for removal from the SOL by DE&T, but whose removal was rejected by the Minister for Immigration and Border Protection. In 2017, the first criterion for ‘flagging’ an occupation changed, so that occupations are now 'flagged' when there is emerging evidence of excess supply in the labour market in the medium-to-long term. This is a nonsensical criterion, as there is no way to accurately determine the labour market supply or demand for an individual occupation in the medium-to-long term, which was most recently defined by DE&T as five-to-ten years into the future. The Minister for Immigration and Border Protection still has the final say on which occupations are included on the MLTSSL, and the ‘flagged’ list still includes occupations which the DE&T has recommended should be removed from the MLTSSL, but whose removal has been rejected by the Minister. The table below shows the recent history of engineering Unit Groups which were flagged for removal from the SOL and, for 2017-18, the MLTSSL. Given the enormous increase in the supply:demand ratio for each of these Unit Groups since 2011-12, they should have been removed from the SOL/MLTSSL years ago. As noted in the News post of 7th May 2017, ‘2333 Electrical Engineers’ has never been flagged, which is an unjustifiable situation given that this Unit Group has been among the most heavily oversupplied for several years. The DE&T’s list of ‘flagged’ occupations for 2017-18 is available at: https://www.education.gov.au/flagged-occupations-MLTSSL Note 1: Only ‘233111 Chemical engineer’ has been flagged for removal.
Note 2: ‘2336 Mining Engineers’ was removed from the SOL for 2016-17. Note 3: ‘2336 Mining Engineers’ was excluded from the MLTSSL for independent and family nominated migrants, and for State and Territory Government nominations. However, this Unit Group was included on the MLTSSL for employer nominations for permanent and temporary visas. Note 4: One occupation in this Unit Group, namely ‘233999 Engineering professionals (not elsewhere classified)’ was excluded from the MLTSSL for independent and family nominated migrants, and for State and Territory Government nominations. However, this occupation was included on the MLTSSL for employer nominations for permanent and temporary visas. As described in the News post of 8 July 2017, the Federal Government now maintains three different versions of the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) and the Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL). There is a fourth version for a training visa, but this is not considered here.
This use of several different versions of the lists has complicated the understanding of how they are used, while potentially providing the Government with the flexibility to remove occupations from one version while keeping them on the others. In the case of the 21 occupations in the ANZSCO Minor Group ‘233 Engineering Professionals’, none are listed on any version of the STSOL, indicating that the Government does not think there is any current or near term shortage of engineers. Rather, 18 of 21 engineering occupations are on the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL) that applies to independent and family nominated migrants, as well as to migrants nominated by State and Territory Governments. All 21 engineering occupations are on the MLTSSL for employer nominated permanent and temporary visas. The Government uses its ‘stockpiling theory’ to justify the inclusion of oversupplied engineering occupations on the various versions of the MLTSSL (see pages 30 and 31 of the report, and Item 1 under the ‘Corruption’ tab on this website). With the MLTSSL, the strategy is to bring migrants into the country now in case there is an upturn in the labour market, and therefore demand for their skills, in 5-10 years’ time. This is the ‘stockpiling theory’ – that professionals can be brought into a labour market now and still be available to satisfy skills shortages in 5-10 years’ time regardless of whether or not they are able to secure employment in their occupation in the meantime. In the vastly oversupplied engineering labour market, some of these migrants are placed into jobs ahead of Australian jobseekers, and the Australian engineers are then also faced with the daunting prospect of trying to return to the engineering labour market after a prolonged, enforced absence. Employers are ruthless in their selection of recruits, and an absence of two years or more makes a return to engineering very difficult. This reality of employer recruitment practices is acknowledged by the Productivity Commission, the Australian Human Rights Commission, and Engineers Australia. It is supported by data collected by the Australian Bureau of Statistics. In April 2017 the Federal Government announced changes to the subclass 457 visa, and its eventual replacement by the Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa, to be completed in March 2018. One of the big selling points of the changes was that employers would be required to undertake market testing before any subclass 457 or TSS visa could be granted to a migrant. Market testing requires employers to ‘test’ the market to see if any suitable Australian candidates can be found, and only if no local candidates are available can a migrant be granted a visa and working rights. At the same time, in a partial acknowledgment of the oversupply of the engineering labour market, the following engineering occupations were excluded from employer and State and Territory Government visa nominations (see News post of 24 April 2017). These were, and still are, among the most heavily oversupplied engineering occupations: 233111 Chemical engineer 233112 Materials engineer 233411 Electronics engineer 233511 Industrial engineer 233513 Production or plant engineer 233612 Petroleum engineer. These occupations were therefore only available on the MLTSSL for independent and family nominated visas. The Government announcements about 457 visas led to well-publicised and furious lobbying from vested interests, with the result that the Government openly stated that it was prepared to reconsider aspects of its changes. Now it turns out that not all occupations will be subject to labour market testing under the subclass 457/TSS visa regime. The Government recently published its list of those occupations for which labour market testing is required: https://www.border.gov.au/visas/Pages/general-guide-to-457-programme-occupations-which-are-not-exempt-from-labour-market-testing.aspx. Those not on the list are exempt from labour market testing. Fourteen of the 21 engineering occupations are on the list, and therefore require employers to undertake market testing for any vacancies. The following seven engineering occupations are not on the list, and are thus exempt from market testing: 233111 Chemical engineer 233112 Materials engineer 233213 Quantity surveyor 233411 Electronics engineer 233511 Industrial engineer 233513 Production or plant engineer 233612 Petroleum engineer. The six engineering occupations which were excluded from employer and State and Territory Government nominations in mid-April 2017 because they are oversupplied are now available for visa nominations from these sources. Furthermore, employers who wish to bring in migrant engineers in one of these occupations on a four year 457 visa can do so without any labour market testing. This is clear evidence that the skilled migration program is not driven by labour market conditions but, in this case, by the lobbying of vested interests. Australian engineering jobseekers continue to be treated like cannon fodder. The Federal Government has announced the composition of the MLTSSL for 2017-18. This list now has even more significance for ANZSCO Minor Group ‘233 Engineering Professionals’ than it did previously. In a convoluted legislative arrangement, the composition of the MLTSSL varies slightly according to the visa being applied for.
The latest changes can be understood with reference to the visa maps on this website. Visas which are not nominated by employers or State and Territory Governments For the subclass 189, subclass 485 (Graduate Work Stream) and subclass 489 (Family nominated) visas, the composition of the MLTSSL is described in the following legislative instrument: IMMI 17/072, available at: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2017L00850 On this version of the MLTSSL, all engineering occupations in ‘233 Engineering Professionals’ are included with the following exceptions: 233611 Mining engineer (excluding Petroleum) 233612 Petroleum engineer 233999 Engineering professionals (not elsewhere classified) The first two of these occupations were removed from the former Skilled Occupation List (SOL) for the 2015-16 year, and they remain off with the publication of the new MLTSSL, which supersedes the SOL. Since most migrant engineers are granted the subclass 189 visa, all the engineering occupations on the MLTSSL will continue to be oversupplied. State and Territory Government nominated visas Subclass 190 and subclass 489 (Government nominated) visas are drawn from occupations listed on the combined MLTSSL and Short-term Skilled Occupation List (STSOL), as prescribed in IMMI 17/072. No occupations in ‘233 Engineering Professionals’ are listed in the STSOL, but all the engineering occupations listed on the MLTSSL can be nominated for these two visas. Employer nominated permanent residence visa The MLTSSL and the STSOL for the subclass 186 visa are documented in the following legislative instrument: IMMI 17/080, available at: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2017L00851 All occupations in ‘233 Engineering Professionals’ appear on the MLTSSL in IMMI 17/080, and are therefore available for the employer nominated subclass 186 visa. Subclass 457 visa This visa has a two year stream and a four year stream. Visas for the two year stream can only be awarded for occupations on the STSOL. Visas for the four year stream can only be awarded for occupations on the MLTSSL. For the 457 visa, the legislative instrument is: IMMI 17/060, available at: https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/F2017L00848 All occupations in ‘233 Engineering Professionals’ are on the MLTSSL in IMMI 17/060. None are on the STSOL. Thus all these engineering occupations are available for the four year 457 visa, which will be replaced by the four year Medium-term Temporary Skills Shortage visa in March 2018. The report has been updated to reflect the changes to the skilled migration program that the Federal Government announced on 18th April 2017. This includes the renaming of the two occupational skills lists, and the scrapping in March 2018 of the subclass 457 visa which will be replaced with the Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa.
Graphs of engineering graduates in full-time engineering, scientific, technical or management roles as a percentage of those available for full-time work have been added to Appendices 2 to 8. The report is now at Revision 2. The engineering occupations excluded from the combined STSOL and MLTSSL (see post on 23/4/17), and which are therefore not available for employer-nominated and State and Territory Government-nominated visas, are among those identified by the author as the most oversupplied. See Table 6a in the report. The Unit Group '2333 Electrical Engineers' is the exception.
Despite being almost as extensively oversupplied as '2331 Chemical and Materials Engineers' and '2334 Electronics Engineers', '2333 Electrical Engineers' is still inexplicably included on the combined list. This Unit Group has also never been flagged on the skilled occupation list (now the MLTSSL) at anytime in the last six years, whereas all other Unit Groups have. See Table 5 in the report. As of 19th April 2017, migrants can be nominated for visas by employers or State and Territory Governments if their occupations are included in a list which is a combined version of the STOL and MLTSSL. This combined list specifically excludes a few occupations that do appear on the stand-alone MLTSSL. Overall, this means that migrants in a large number of occupations can be granted visas through the process of nomination, which was also the case before the recent changes.
Nearly all engineering occupations are included on the combined list, except for the following: 233111 Chemical engineer 233112 Materials engineer 233411 Electronics engineer 233511 Industrial engineer 233513 Production or plant engineer 233612 Petroleum engineer. These six engineering occupations cannot be included in employer or State and Territory Government visa nominations. With the exception of 233612 Petroleum engineer they are, however, on the standalone MLTSSL, and migrants with these occupations can access visas for independent migrants such as the subclass 189 and subclass 485 (Graduate Work Stream) visas. The exclusion of these six engineering occupations from employer and State and Territory Government nominations will make almost no difference to the annual tally of migrant engineers who are granted visas. This is because visa nominations are insignificant compared with the number of visas granted to independent migrants, in particular those who access the subclass 189 permanent residence visa. Recently graduated international students are typically granted either the subclass 485 (Graduate Work Stream) visa or the subclass 485 (Post Study Work Stream) visa, the latter of which does not require an occupation to be listed on the STSOL or MLTSSL. From 19th April 2017, the Skilled Occupation List (SOL) was replaced by the Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL).
Every occupation in ANZSCO Minor Group '233 Engineering Professionals' is listed on the MLTSSL, except for the following: 233611 Mining engineer (excluding Petroleum) 233612 Petroleum engineer 233999 Engineering professionals (not elsewhere classified) See Schedule 1 in 'Specification of Occupations, a Person or Body, a Country or Countries Amendment Instrument 2017/040 (IMMI 17/040)', 18 April 2017. The visas that require occupations to be listed on the MLTSSL are typically those for independent migrants (not nominated by an employer or State or Territory Government). The visa that is granted most frequently to engineers is the Skilled Independent (subclass 189) visa. From March 2018, the Medium-Term stream of the new Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa will only be granted for occupations listed on the MLTSSL. The TSS is the replacement for the 457 visa. In the most recent review of the composition of the SOL, submissions for which closed in November 2016, Professionals Australia argued that all engineering occupations should be removed due to the current large oversupply of engineers. The Australasian Institute of Mining and Metallurgy argued that some engineering occupations should be removed. In contrast, Engineers Australia and the Australian Council of Engineering Deans separately argued that all engineering occupations should remain on the SOL. The submission by Engineers Australia is critically reviewed in Section 13 (pp.48-58) of the report, and the Australian Council of Engineering Deans' submission is critically reviewed in Section 14 (pp.59-61) of the report. Under new Commonwealth legislation active from today, the Consolidated Sponsored Occupation List (CSOL) has been renamed the Short-term Skilled Occupation List.
Of the 21 occupations in ANZSCO Minor Group '233 Engineering Professionals', only two are included in the STSOL. These are: 233611 Mining engineer (excluding petroleum) 233999 Engineering professionals (not elsewhere classified). See Schedule 2 in 'Specification of Occupations, a Person or Body, a Country or Countries Amendment Instrument 2017/040 (IMMI 17/040)', 18 April 2017. Previously, only three engineering occupations were included on the CSOL: the two listed above, and 233612 Petroleum engineer. In March 2018, the 457 visa will be abolished, and will be replaced with the Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) visa. There will be two versions of the TSS: a Short-Term stream, and a Medium-Term stream. The Short-Term stream will have a duration of up to two years, and will only be granted for occupations that are listed on the STSOL. The Medium-Term stream, with a duration of up to four years, will only be granted to occupations listed on the newly-named Medium and Long-term Strategic Skills List (MLTSSL), which is the former Skilled Occupation List (SOL). Previously, to access the 457 visa for an occupation, the occupation had to be listed on the CSOL. However, in practice the Department of Immigration and Border Protection added all the occupations on the legislated Skilled Occupation List (SOL) to those on the legislated CSOL to obtain a 'working' CSOL with a much larger number of occupations. Most engineering occupations were listed on the SOL, and it was through this practice that 457 visas could be accessed for all engineering occupations. See Section 10.2 (p.32) of the report for further information. The Federal Government announced today it was scrapping the notorious Temporary Work (Skilled) subclass 457 visa. Based on early reports, this visa will be replaced by two temporary entry visas of two and fours years duration respectively. Eligibility requirements for the new visas will be more stringent than for the 457 visa.
In 2015-16, 1095 migrant engineers were granted 457 visas, compared with 6867 who were granted permanent residence visas, notably the Skilled Independent (subclass 189) visa. At the end of June 2016 there were 2327 engineers working in Australia on 457 visas, some of whom had been granted the visa in previous years. For more information and statistics about 457 visas granted to engineers, see Section 10.5 on page 36 of the report. Due to new information becoming available just before Easter, Table 9 has been updated and Section 14 added. The report is now at Revision 1.
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November 2018
CategoriesAuthorJim Oakley |