AUSTRALIA-NEW RULES HIT MEAT AND FARMING INDUSTRY.
Meat industry worried about tougher English standards for work visas
Meat processors are attempting to negotiate concessions for foreign workers coming to Australia under the 457 skilled worker temporary visa program.
Yesterday, the Federal Government raised the bar for English language standards for visa applicants.
They’ll now need to have English at IELTS Level 5, up from Level 4.5.
Currently, meatworkers entering Australia are only required to have level 3 English, and that’s where Kevin Cottrell, from the Australian Meat Industry Council, says it should stay.
"Obviously, IELTS 3 is proven to be quite successful in terms of the people we have brought in so far," he says.
"IELTs 5 would make it quite difficult for a number of people working in the meatworks to get that sort of a level of English.
