Unlocking Potential: How Refugees Are Revitalizing Australia's Workforce

It’s something Australia has long been accustomed to, with refugees once again knocking on our door seeking safety, stability and a chance to rebuild their lives. Refugees are not a burden on Australia; they contribute to the economy in ways that are often unseen During the post-World War II period particularly, strongly anti-fascist policies embraced those fleeing wars and persecution in Europe, including a resettlement scheme called the Assisted Passage Migrant Program which resettled more than 300,000 refugees between 1947 and 1972. The supply of refugees from the Vietnam conflict alone helped Australia’s population reach a record high at the box-office at the time of Mad Max: Fury Road’s opening performances. Until Europe’s sociopolitical turmoil spiked many thousands of refugees in 2015 fleeing conflicts and persecution in the Middle East and North Africa towards Australia, refugee arrivals in our country grew from a few hundred in the early 1950s to more than 20,000 in the early 1970s, surging to more than 33,000 in the early 2000s. Stabilising over time at about 13,000 arrivals annually in the early 2010s, these refugees have contributed in ways that are often unseen by mainstream society. Australia’s continuing need for skilled workers in many areas is mirroring the growing skill shortages in other OECD countries.

The Economic Potential of Refugee Employment

More than just the taxes they pay, it’s the fact that when refugees find paid work, they move from being the recipient of government support to being an employer’s productive member of the state’s economy. Just in case we needed reminding, of course, many refugees are doctors, engineers, IT specialists and teachers – some of the most needed workers in our struggling , , , and sectors.

Not only does employing refugees help to address skills shortages but it’s also good for the local economy. Refugees who are working have more money to spend on housing, goods and services, which can lead to welcome increases in revenue for host communities. And refugees who work also pay taxes which help to cover the costs of public services, and reduce the funding pressures on welfare programmes.

Studies have also shown that refugees tend to be more resilient and adaptable employees. Having put their lives at risk to flee war abroad, they are motivated to make the most of their new opportunity. This will make them hard-working and loyal employees, eager to contribute to the expansion of the companies they work for.

Refugees Bring New Perspectives and Innovation

A big advantage of employing people from a refugee background is their diversity. These people tend to come from different cultures and with different educational backgrounds. This means that they will approach problems in different ways – in most cases more out-of-the-box approaches – than those presented to them by the employer or coworker. This is most likely to lead to improved solutions and creative thinking, particularly in a sales environment.

As such firms are better equipped to succeed in the globalised modern world of ideas and interconnectedness. Studies have analysed and demonstrated that companies that hire a multitude of streams and with diverse innovative, robust, problem-solving and will hiring refugees, business firms make an inverse investment, as they become stronger in the quality of their efforts and enriched in their innovation potential, and so are better fit to compete at the highest levels.

Additionally, many refugees also have important international perspectives on other cultures, languages and ways of living that can be extremely valuable in globalising industries such as the mining, manufacturing and financial sectors, helping Australian businesses more successfully tap into global markets.

A Moral Imperative: Providing Opportunities to Those in Need

In salutary economic and business advantages, there is also a powerful moral imperative for hiring refugees. Most have endured war, persecution and other extreme forms of hardship, in many cases travelling great distances simply to stay alive. Employing them not only contributes to their reintegration into society, but also to promoting a sense of openness and compassion with respect to social values and responsibilities.

For Christian-based organisations, this is often seen as a vocational calling. The Bible urges followers not just to welcome the stranger, but to look after the most vulnerable members of society: businesses that hire refugees are in a position to live their faith literally by demonstrating such compassion. This is not just good business. It is at the heart of the Christian traditions of compassion and the sanctity of human life.

How Employers Can Get Involved

Well, employers considering hiring refugees can be assured that there are, in fact, pertinent services easily available. Organisations such as ours offer end-to-end service, from refugee skill mapping to job placement support, and have worked extensively with both refugees and businesses to help integrate them into the workforce staff are in the right positions for the long-term.

Furthermore, some refugees as language training or ment enter the workplace, and businesses can provide these things help refugees get jobs.

Conclusion

Ref is a win-win for Australia. It will open up employment opportunities for Australia’s workforce and economy — especially in tackling skill shortages, boosting innovation, attracting exports and turning refugees into Australia’s best neighbours to-date. Maybe we need refugees not just for charity, but also to build a younger, smarter, more empathetic and prosperous Australia.

And as more businesses recruit refugees, we can hope to see a more successful, more diverse workforce, one that is more capable of meeting the challenges of the 21st century. In welcoming more refugees to their workplaces, Australian businesses can act as drivers of economic growth and the hope and opportunity for which refugees are looking.