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    The 2023–24 Portfolio Budget Statements were released on 9 May 2023.

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Department of Agriculture

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  1. Home
  2. Agriculture and land
  3. Farming, food and rural support
  4. Agricultural Workforce

Sidebar first - Farming

  • Farming, food and rural support
    • Drought, disaster and rural support
      • Assistance measures
        • Drought Communities Program
        • Farm Household Allowance
          • Farm Household Allowance data dashboard
          • FHA factsheets and guidelines
          • Review of the Farm Household Allowance (FHA)
        • Farm Management Deposits
          • Farm Management Deposits Statistics
          • Historical Farm Management Deposits Statistics
          • Information for Authorised Deposit-taking Institutions (ADIs)
          • Information for primary producers
          • FMD Rainfall Analyser
          • FMD Rainfall Analyser FAQs
          • Reviews of the Farm Management Deposits Scheme
        • Managing Farm Risk
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        • Regional Investment Corporation
        • Social support and wellbeing
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      • Approach to farm debt mediation (FDM)
      • Drought assistance contacts
      • Drought Policy
        • Drought monitoring
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          • Government actions addressing the Coordinator-General for Drought’s advice
        • National Drought Agreement
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        • Drought Resilience Research and Adoption program
          • Drought Resilience Research and Adoption Program webinar
            • Drought Resilience Adoption and Innovation Hubs
              • Drought Resilience Innovation Grants
              • Science to Practice Forum
        • Drought Resilience Research and Adoption National Enabling Activities
        • Drought Resilience Self-Assessment Tool
        • Farm Business Resilience Program
        • Helping Regional Communities Prepare for Drought Initiative
        • Monitoring, evaluation and learning
        • Natural Resource Management Drought Resilience Program – Grants
        • Natural Resource Management Drought Resilience Program — Landscapes
        • Regional Drought Resilience Planning
    • Delivering Ag2030
    • Climate change
      • National Statement on Climate Change and Agriculture
      • Adaptation
      • Mitigation
        • Emissions Reduction Fund
          • Biochar Capacity Building Program
          • Emissions Reduction Fund Plantation Notification
      • A Coordinated National approach
    • Agricultural Lending Data
    • Agricultural Workforce
      • Tripartite Working Group
      • Workforce management and planning
    • Agriculture White Paper
    • Agricultural and veterinary chemicals
      • Importing and exporting chemicals
      • Domestic policy
        • History of COAG reforms
          • A single national framework for the regulation of agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines - funding model
          • A single national framework for the regulation of agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines - regulatory model
          • Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) to COAG
        • The Harmonised Agvet Chemical Control of Use Task group (HACCUT)
        • Harmonisation of off-label use in agricultural chemicals
        • Harmonisation of VPCR treatment of Livestock
        • Independent research on agvet chemicals monitoring data in Australia
      • Improved access to agricultural and veterinary chemicals
        • Assistance grants-Access to industry priority uses of Agvet Chemicals
      • International policy
        • Methyl Bromide and the Montreal Protocol
        • Rotterdam Convention
        • Stockholm Convention
        • Working Group on Pesticides
      • Reforming the regulation of agricultural chemicals and veterinary medicines
        • Streamlining the regulation of agvet chemicals
          • APVMA Board and Other Improvements Bill 2019
          • Recent Agvet Chemicals Regulations Amendments and Ministerial Orders
          • Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals Legislation Amendment (Streamlining Regulation) Bill 2018
          • Agricultural and Veterinary Chemicals Legislation Amendment (Operational Efficiency) Bill 2017
          • Previous consultation
        • First Principles Review
        • Previous reviews related to agricultural and veterinary chemicals regulation
      • Chemical Regulation
      • APVMA Strategic Review Report - July 2023
      • APVMA Review of Cost Recovery Arrangements - 2017
      • Cost benefit and risk analysis of the potential relocation of the APVMA - 2016
    • Animal
    • Biotechnology
      • Biotechnology reports, articles, brochures and factsheets
      • International Statement on Low Level Presence
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      • International Statement on Agricultural Applications of Precision Biotechnology
      • Biotechnology and agriculture in Australia: policy snapshot
    • Crops
      • About Australian crop industries
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        • Reform of sugar research and development arrangements
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        • Definitions, abbreviations and acronyms
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      • Agricultural Shows and Field Days
        • Agricultural Show Development Grants Program
        • Supporting Agricultural Showmen and Women
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    • Levies and charges
      • About levies and the levy system
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      • Streamlining and modernising levies legislation
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    • Meat, wool and dairy
      • Dairy
      • Dairy Industry Code
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        • Review of AUS-MEAT’s capability to oversee the rollout of DEXA technology
        • Dept of Food and Agriculture, WA - NW WA Beef abattoir report
        • Exporting meat and meat products
        • Export quotas
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      • Wool
    • Natural resources
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        • Ecosystem Services Report
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        • Climate-smart sustainable agriculture
        • Landcare publications
        • Australian Framework for Landcare
        • National Landcare Program
          • Australian Government investment in Landcare
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        • Agriculture Biodiversity Stewardship Package
      • Natural Resource Publications
      • Australian Government Reef Programme
      • Salinity
        • Salinity Mapping
          • What is airborne electromagnetics?
      • National Soil Strategy
        • National Soils Advocate
          • National Soils Advocate Forum 2022
          • National Soils Advocate Forum 2021
          • National Soils Advocate - Terms of Reference
        • Monitoring the condition of the soil resource
          • Ground cover monitoring for Australia
        • Improving land management practices
        • National Soil RD&E Strategy
        • Reporting on trends in improved land management practices
      • Vegetation
        • Environment Protection and Biodiversity Conservation Act
        • Rangelands
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    • Research and innovation
      • Rural Research and Development Corporations
      • National Agricultural Innovation Agenda
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        • National Science Exchange Conference
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        • Approved round one projects
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        • Expert Assessment Panel
    • Wine
      • Wine Tourism and Cellar Door Grant
      • Support for wine industry impacted by red grape oversupply
    • Working holiday maker visa
      • Terms of reference
      • Submissions

Agricultural Workforce

Australian agriculture produces world-class food and fibre and is on track to contribute $92 billion to the national economy in 2022-23 and aims to achieve a $100 billion farm gate output by 2030.

The agricultural industry directly employs around 239,000 people and is a major source of jobs in rural and regional Australia.

One of the biggest challenges facing the agriculture industry is securing an appropriate workforce. This involves a whole-of-government approach to invest in the skills of Australians, create as many opportunities in the regions as possible, support secure pathways for overseas workers, and ensure workers are protected.

Find out how the Australian Government is supporting the agricultural industry to better skill, attract, protect, and retain its workforce in the following fact sheet.

Download

Supporting the agriculture sector and its workforce factsheet (PDF 114 KB)
Supporting the agriculture sector and its workforce factsheet (DOCX 210 KB)

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

The Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry, Senator the Hon Murray Watt, established the Agricultural Workforce Working Group (the Working Group) at the Jobs and Skills Summit in September 2022.

The Working Group included representatives from employer groups, unions and the Australian Government. The Working Group focused on finding solutions that address workforce issues in the agriculture and processing sectors, including skilling, attracting, retaining and protecting workers.

In the final Working Group meeting on 15 September 2023, the Working Group agreed to continue tripartite engagement through an Agricultural Workforce Forum.

Further information on the Working Group, including a full list of members.

A communique is published after each meeting of the Working Group. Read the Working Group communiques.

Agriculture and its workers stand to benefit from a range of measures in the 2023-24 Budget. These include:

  • An additional $3.7 billion upon striking a five-year National Skills Agreement with states and territories to ensure more access to vocational education and training, with TAFE at the centre of a high quality, responsive skills system.
    • This skills investment builds on over $400 million provided in the October 2022 Budget for a further 300,000 Fee Free TAFE and VET places in high-skill needs areas such as agriculture from 2024 to 2026 – subject to agreement with states and territories.
  • Further expanding and improving the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme, to support sustainable scheme growth and improve support for workers.
    • For more information visit the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade PALM website.
  • Committing $75.8 million over two years from 2023–24 to extend the current surge in visa processing resources to ensure timeliness of visa processing and improve existing visa processing systems.
  • Improving pathways to permanency for Temporary Skill Shortage (TSS) (subclass 482) visa holders.
  • Supporting strong regional communities with access to essential services, with a range of initiatives across early childcare, schooling, healthcare and housing.

Fee-Free TAFE will provide opportunities for Australians to access skills and training across priority industries. Over 500 students have enrolled in an agriculture-related Fee-Free TAFE course during the first half of 2023. Places are now available for enrolment for students looking to commence a career in the industry or existing workers wanting to upskill.

Find out more about these opportunities by accessing our Fee-Free TAFE for agriculture factsheets.

Download

Fee-Free TAFE for Agriculture (PDF 464KB)
Fee-Free TAFE for Agriculture (DOCX 219 KB)

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

An inclusive and diverse workforce is important to the growth of Australia’s agricultural sector.

Employers and employees can find out more about what Commonwealth support is available by accessing our Workforce diversity and inclusion in agriculture factsheet.

The factsheet specifically outlines what Commonwealth support is available for:

  • People with disability
  • Women
  • First Nations Australians.

Download

Inclusion fact sheet (PDF 229 KB)
Inclusion fact sheet (DOCX 216 KB)

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

The Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme remains a key program for meeting agricultural workforce shortages and allows eligible Australian businesses to hire unskilled, low-skilled, and semi-skilled workers from nine Pacific islands and Timor-Leste when there are not enough local workers available. The government is working closely with the Pacific and the sector to strengthen and expand the scheme.

For more information visit the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade PALM website.

The government is continuing its review of the migration system. Information on the review can be found at the Department of Home Affairs website.

The Government’s AgATTRACT measures aim to shift perceptions of agriculture work and showcase the diverse career opportunities on offer through a range of programs.

AgCAREERSTART

The AgCAREERSTART pilot program is a structured employment program to help young Australians start a career in agriculture in their gap year. Read more about AgCAREERSTART or register your interest at agcareerstart.com.au

Download

AgCAREERSTART factsheet (PDF 193 KB)
AgCAREERSTART factsheet (DOCX 259 KB)

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

Community Perceptions and Worker Experiences Project

The Community Perceptions and Worker Experiences Research Project was commissioned as a one-year project to better understand and respond to community perceptions and worker experiences within the agriculture, fisheries, and forestry sector.

The final report and several case studies promoting positive aspects of working in the sector are available on the AgriFutures website.  The research will support industry to improve their workforce attraction and retention strategies. 

National Careers Institute Career Mapping Project

We provided $2.7 million funding to the National Careers Institute to build an interactive career map on the YourCareer website, showcasing the breath and diversity of occupations in the agriculture, fisheries and forestry sector.

The career map will increase the awareness of traditional, non-traditional, new and emerging agricultural occupations, provide information on the transferability of occupations and skill sets to careers in agriculture and highlight the broad diversity of people that have forged interesting and successful careers as part of the agricultural workforce.

AgUP

The AgUP grants program provides grant funding to three successful applicants to support industry-led projects that create opportunities for attraction, retention, upskilling, training, mentoring and career progression for the agricultural workforce. All projects run from 2021-22 to 2024-25.

AgFAIR supports agricultural employers to adopt best practice modern workforce management and planning to attract and retain employees. This includes the procurement of practical resources to support employers to implement modern workforce management and planning practices.

Fair Farms

The Fair Farms initiative supports an industry-led training and certification scheme that aims to foster fair employment practices and reduce the risk of worker exploitation in the Australian horticultural industry. More information about Fair Farms can be found here.

Modern Workforce Management and Planning Practices

To support agricultural employers and businesses to build and improve workforce management and planning practices and skills, the project produced case studies and easy to use tools which provide practical support for employers, particularly small to medium-sized enterprises in the horticulture sector.

Watch the champion farmer videos and access the tools here.

The Educating Kids About Agriculture initiative supports two programs bringing our kids and our farms together.

  • The Kids to Farms program sponsors government, Catholic and independent primary school visits to farms and other primary production worksites. Students learn about agriculture production, sustainability practices and land stewardship.
  • The Farms to Kids (iFarms) program delivers integrated farming platforms or ‘mini farms’ to city and inner city schools nationally to increase students understanding of where and how their food and fibre are produced.

The National Agriculture Labour Advisory Committee’s report – National Agricultural Workforce Strategy: Learning to excel was released in March 2021.

See the National Agriculture Workforce Strategy below.

Download

National Agricultural Workforce Strategy PDF 5.1 MB
National Agricultural Workforce Strategy DOCX 8.4 MB

If you have difficulty accessing these files, visit web accessibility for assistance.

General enquiries

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Last updated: 21 September 2023

© Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

We acknowledge the Traditional Owners of country throughout Australia and recognise their continuing connection to land, waters and culture. We pay our respects to their Elders past, present and emerging.