The national employer association Ai Group welcomes the federal government’s changes to the Mutual Recognition Act designed to reduce red tape for skilled workers.
The amendment to the Act passed by the Senate this week allows for the automatic registration of occupations across Australian state borders.
Ai Group Chief Executive, Innes Willox, said “For far too long workers who wished to work across state borders had to navigate complex and overly bureaucratic occupational licensing regimes.
"Too often an individual has had to apply for an additional licence to undertake identical work, merely because a border has been crossed.
"Never before has it been so important for us to free up labour mobility with automatic mutual recognition of occupational licences.
"With closed borders and restrictions on skilled migration, employers are struggling to find the right skills to get things done.
"This has the potential to impact all types of work, from major infrastructure projects to local production.
"Enabling skilled workers to move around is ultimately good for both the worker and the economy.
"It is essential that all jurisdictions to get behind this important legislation," Mr Willox said.
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