Solving rail’s skills crisis though skilled migration

By Tanya Davies

The rail industry has been tasked with the most ambitious infrastructure agenda in recent history and many organisations are finding it difficult to resource these major projects, with critical skilled resources unavailable or inaccessible in Australia. Importing skilled resources from overseas is now being seen as a viable alternative.
Unfortunately, recruiting from overseas is often seen as a daunting task, often outsourced due to its complexity. In some instances, this may be the best option, but in other cases it may not.
To help the rail industry better understand the process, the Australasian Railway Association (ARA) and the CRC for Rail Innovation are hosting a Rail Skilled Migration Forum on November 26th-27th.
The forum has been designed to give participants from the rail industry the opportunity to:
.Talk to the experts about skilled migration options;
.Access the latest information;
.De-mystify the process to enable organisations to make more informed decisions about recruiting from overseas;
.Share and workshop information, policy frameworks, approaches and innovative ideas and experiences around skilled migration; and
.Solve short, medium and long term skilled resourcing issues by recruiting from overseas.
Importantly, this is a FREE EVENT and all conference costs will be met by the organisers with participants’ costs limited to travel, accommodation and non conference meals.
The program consists of presentations, panels and workshops hosted by key stakeholders, including: Department of Immigration & Citizenship (DIAC), Department of Education, Employment & Workplace Relations (DEEWR), the Australian National Engineering Taskforce, Skills Australia, Migration Institute of Australia (MIA), Trades Recognition Australia and VETASSESS.
Information collected during the forum will go towards the outcomes of the project.

To register visit: www.ara.net.au/site/events.php

*Tanya Davies is manager of ARA’s Rail Skills & Career Council (RSCC)