FGT update: Looking local for seasonal labour

Fruit Growers Tasmania | Friday, 11 September 2020, 7.00pm

Growers are being advised to "get active" as the Tasmanian Government begins rolling out its Tassie Harvest Jobs campaign to entice locals to take up the more than 8,000 seasonal jobs that the fruit industry will have available in the upcoming harvest. Announced as part of the a $1.9M Agricultural Workforce Resilience Package, the Tassie Harvest Jobs campaign will feature prominently on social media, including Facebook, Youtube and Instagram, as well as in local media sources including commercial television, radio and print.

Given the ongoing shortage of working holiday makers present within the state, the focus and priority for this season is going to have to be on hiring and retaining Tasmanian locals to fill seasonal harvest roles.

Relying on recruiting locals will mean reaching out and convincing members of the Tasmanian community of the importance and benefits of working in the harvest season, some of whom have heard unfavourable notions of the work. Throughout the campaign, FGT and DPIPWE will be reaching out to growers for interviews, video footage and photographs to help sell the positive aspects of working in the Tasmanian fruit harvest which are often overlooked in the media, and to highlight its importance to regional Tasmanian communities.

As an industry, reporting on the progress we are making with this remains of paramount importance to support growers and government in making informed decisions. To help industry track where we sit with available vacancies versus available workers, growers are being asked to advertise any and all labour needs on the Harvest Trail website. Advertising vacancies with the Harvest Trail is free for employers and can done be in addition to their normal advertising channels, and only requires a telephone call on 1800 062 332.

FGT welcomes the understanding of the Government that we need experienced and trained workers to work alongside locals who will be new to the industry in this harvest. To this end, we welcome the Government's commitment to work with industry to ensure the safe return of those workers under the Seasonal Worker Program and Pacific Labour Scheme currently in other states with little or no COVID-19 cases. Safe return of these experienced workers is critical to ensuring Tasmania’s $200 million berry industry can harvest its fruit over the next 8 months and workers would undertake a 14 day quarantine upon arrival in line with Tasmanian Government requirements.

We also welcome the understanding of the Government that it is unlikely that all the available seasonal positions will be filled by locals and that other avenues will be needed throughout the season. At industry's request, the Tasmanian Government has agreed to opt in to the restart of the Seasonal Worker Program and Pacific Labour Scheme to ensure additional seasonal workers are available during the season.