Australia inundated with record number of working holiday makers

ABC NEWS (Australia)

Recent visa changes have rocketed the number of working holiday makers in Australia to an all-time high. British backpackers are leading the charge and not everyone is happy about it.

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00:00Working holidaymakers are back in a big way.

00:06It took me at least three weeks to meet someone who was actually Australian.

00:09206,000 called Australia home by December, a record haul.

00:15And almost a quarter of those arrivals are from the United Kingdom.

00:19The uptick in arrivals has been boosted by concessions negotiated in a free trade agreement with the UK,

00:26which came into effect in July.

00:28As a Brit, coming over and knowing that you don't have to do that rural farm work,

00:32so the 88 days in order to extend your visa for the second year,

00:35I think it allows people to work more in their comfort zone.

00:40Now Brits can also stay longer and be older.

00:44It is encouraging a lot more of us to come over.

00:46But it's not welcome news for all, particularly beyond the holiday hotspots.

00:51We would not like to see this replicated to other nations

00:54and we do need to have an incentive put in place to ensure that we are getting that workforce that's vitally required.

01:01We've seen a hierarchy created in the Working Holidaymaker program,

01:05whereby nationals, applicants from the UK, have one set of rules that allows them to work anywhere.

01:13Migration experts say the record number of working travellers puts pressure on annual migration targets

01:20at a time when Australia is trying to reduce arrivals.

01:24Many businesses say Working Holidaymakers, who now come from 50 countries, are vital to their operations.

01:31Now that there's more in the country and more available,

01:34then you can pick and choose a little bit more and subsequently find people that are more suited to your establishment.

01:40A temporary workforce in major demand.

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