Pacific worker trial a win for Queensland tourism
LNP shadow minister for Tourism Jann Stuckey welcomed the three-year trial for Pacific Island guest workers saying it was consistent with the LNP plan for tourism and will help redress chronic staff shortages in Queensland’s struggling tourism sector, the LNP said today.
Ms Stuckey said it was a win for accommodation providers, particularly in regional Queensland, who’d been struggling to find and keep workers as they competed with the mining sector.
“The LNP has been well aware of this issue, advocating an extension of the Pacific Seasonal Worker Scheme in our CanDo Tourism Strategy,” Ms Stuckey said. “Staff shortages impact on tourism operators’ ability to provide high levels of customer service and ultimately impacts on the bottom line.
“If we are to succeed in doubling overnight expenditure by 2020, we have to plan and ensure we have sufficient trained staff. I am pleased the Federal government has seen the light and allowed this trial to go ahead.”
“Ms Stuckey said Queensland tourism was struggling through no fault of its own after being hit with increasing taxes and charges by the Bligh government at a time the sector could least afford them. The tired, 20-year Labor government has also imposed crippling red tape on the sector — and abolished tourism support groups.”
The travel industry created jobs for 2.7% more people last year with 13,500 more people recruited to work in the sector compared to 2010.
According to Australian Bureau of Statistics’ Tourism Satellite Account figures released late last year, despite the rise in employees, tourism’s share of total employment remained at 4.5% across the country.
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