The Business Council of Australia (BCA) is calling for Sydney’s Aerotropolis and Melbourne’s Fishermens Bend to be covered by a designated area migration agreement (DAMA).
DAMAs represent a formal agreement between the federal government and a regional, state or territory authority that gives easier access to overseas workers than the standard skilled migration program.
However, the BCA’s call has been rejected by the Electrical Trades Union, with acting national secretary Michael Wright saying that Melbourne and western Sydney are hardly top of the list of areas with skill shortages. The Aerotropolis is linked to the building of Sydney’s new airport, and Wright says major infrastructure projects are precisely where Australia should be training young trades people rather than importing migrants.
