Long Term Labour Shortage Pushing Farmers To The Limit
Drastic times call for drastic measures…
Public Servants in New South Wales are being offered ‘Harvest Leave’ for five days so they can pitch in and assist farmers during this year’s harvest amid a COVID-exacerbated workforce shortage.
Peak agriculture bodies have long been calling for help in addressing a workforce shortage, which has intensified since the pandemic forced border closures. Furthermore, the NSW State Government has encouraged staff to head around the state and assist farmers hit hard by seasonal worker availability, during what is tipped to be a bumper season for crops.
On The Record presenter Jeff Bullen is joined in the studio with Dr Elizabeth Jackson, who is a supply chain expert from Curtin University.
Together they sit down to discuss the effectiveness of the ‘Harvest Leave’ initiative, extrapolating upon the possible consequences of a lack of on-farm workers, consumers and the economy, including how much volunteer participation will be required to make substantial differences, and whether Western Australia should follow suit and introduce similar programs to ease farm worker shortages.