Shadow Immigration Minister and Labor Senator,
Kristina Keneally's opinion piece, set out her desire to
review the migration program after the COVID-19 pandemic. Senator
Keneally asked 'do we want migrants to return to Australia in
the same numbers and in the same composition as before the
crisis?' Her answer was no, and she highlighted concerns about
temporary visa holders taking jobs from young Australians, use of
temporary migrant visa holders as cheap labour, and the 'lazy
approach' to economic growth of using migration to increase
economic demand.
I agree that Australia would be foolish to return to the same
policy settings. However, I disagree with many of the Senator's
propositions. The claims that Australia relies upon cheap overseas
temporary labour which undercuts Australian wages and that
temporary migrants 'take' Australian jobs are based on
misconceptions of the labour market and operation of the migration
system. They do however identify a key problem
