AUSTRALIA’S LABOUR SHORTAGE HITTING HOSPITALITY INDUSTRY HARD

When Australia closed its borders due to the pandemic, no one would have been able to guess just how long the effect will last.

Reuters reports that government statistics show the number of non-resident workers in the country, often travellers with work visas, was down by two-thirds in the June quarter of 2021 from the start of 2020, reports Reuters.

Sydney was in lockdown for four months, meaning a lot of casual workers, mostly immigrants, weren’t able to enter the city and have gone back to their native countries. The hospitality industry has been hit hard as most of the casual workers in the industry are non-residents.

George Pompei, the owner of Pompei’s, a popular Italian restaurant at Bondi Beach, traded through lockdown offering takeout and delivery but told Reuters that it is now closing for weekday lunches and all of Monday for the first time in 20 years because half its staff have left the country.

Neil Perry, the famous Australian chef, has called on the government to give a clear plan as to what they will be doing from their side to get casual workers, especially restaurant staff, back into the country.

Image credit: The New Daily