From 1 July 2022, JobActive will be replaced by Workforce Australia. Delivered by the Department of Education, Skills, and Employment, Workforce Australia will be the new digital platform where individuals and businesses can connect and manage their own employment needs.
What is Labour Market Testing?
In September 2020, the Australian Government introduced new labour market testing measures for employer sponsored applications. The introduction supports the legitimate interests of Australian workers by ensuring that temporary skilled visas are utilised only where suitably qualified Australian residents and citizens are not available.
Labour market testing (LMT) is a requirement for employers looking to sponsor workers under either the Temporary Skills Shortage (TSS) (subclass 482) visa or Skilled Employer Sponsored Regional (provisional) (subclass 494) visa programs to test the local market. It generally involves advertising the position in Australia unless an International Trade Obligation (ITO) or alternative requirements apply.
What are the current LMT requirements?
To satisfy the current LMT requirement, the position must have been advertised in Australia in English within four months immediately prior to lodging the nomination application.
The advertisement for the nominated position must:
- Be in English
- Be advertised
- On the Employment Department’s JobActive website; and
- In at least 2 advertisements on or in one or more of the following:
- A recruitment website with a national reach in Australia (other than the JobActive website);
- Print media with a national reach in Australia;
- Radio with a national reach in Australia;
- If the approved sponsor is an accredited sponsor – the approved sponsor’s website.
- Contain the following details of the position:
- The title or a description of the position;
- The skills or experience required for the position;
- the name of the approved sponsor or, if the approved sponsor has engaged a recruitment agency for the purpose of the labour market testing, the name of the recruitment agency;
- the salary for the position, if the intended annual earnings for the nominated position are lower than AUD 96,400.
- Run for a period of at least four weeks
It is important to ensure that LMT is performed correctly and for the required length of time. LMT attempts that do not adhere to the legislative requirements may result in a nomination refusal.
Replacement of JobActive and the effect of this on LMT
At this stage, there have not been any changes to the LMT legislative requirements, but it is expected that the requirements will be amended to reflect the transition of the JobActive website to Workforce Australia. The transition of the JobActive website to Workforce Australia is especially important to employers seeking to lodge subclass 482 or 494 nomination applications post 1 July 2022. Employers should pay attention to the upcoming changes to ensure that their LMT evidence adheres to the new requirements when they come into force.
If you are an Australian business needing assistance with an employer sponsored visa or navigating Labour Market Testing requirements, please contact Migration Affairs today!
