In a previous column I discussed the prolonged skills shortage that Australia is facing in the coming decade and argued that this alone will guarantee the continuation of the current high migration scenario. Today we are exploring this issue from a slightly different angle.

Let’s start with a quick analysis of how important foreign-born workers are for each of the 19 industries above. Industrywide one in three workers was born outside of Australia. Agriculture employs the lowest share of foreign workers (21 per cent) while finance is the most international sector (40 per cent).

Anyone suggesting Australia should switch to a low migration approach must pick and choose from which industries workers should be withheld. Lobbyists for all industries are concerned about the skills shortage – don’t bet on any future government to slow migration down.

I am not getting tired of pointing out just how fast Australia will age in the coming decade. We need to grow our aged care workforce quickly. If you’ve been in an aged care home in the last decade, you know that we will need to import these crucial care workers from overseas.

International construction workers will have an easy pathway into Australia in the near future. Both major parties agree that adding more housing stock is the politically safest approach to tackle the housing affordability........

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