Category Archives: Harvest Trail Talk

Keeping up with changes to harvest labour options The last 12 months have seen many changes to the way harvest labour can be sourced and paid. Most of these changes have been good for growers with several programs expanded, new ones introduced and some red tape removed. However, other changes will mean growers need to […]

Bushfire safety for overseas visitors and workers Australia may be one of the safest countries in the world in which to travel, but when nature threatens – knowledge is not only power, it is safety.  If you employ or host backpackers, here is some information to keep them safe. If the ‘drop-bears’ don’t get you… […]

Labour Hire Update Two more Australian states now have active labour licensing regimes in place with the implementation date passing. However there is still a transition period happening as the systems settle in. The State of Play The first day of November was the date when both Victoria and South Australia joined Queensland to have […]

In good news for growers looking for workers in areas around Queensland’s Lockyer Valley, a new Harvest Office has opened in Gatton. How can a harvest office help? With funding from the Australian Government, Harvest Offices provide a no-cost service to help find workers to pick, pack and plant horticulture, cane, grain and cotton crops. […]

It is a comment often heard; “I’m lucky, I was able to find good harvest workers this year”. This assumes that it should have been difficult to find a good workforce.  This assumption is supported by numerous references in the media, and from industry and politicians to the chronic shortage of horticulture workers and the […]

The Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) is proving very successful for many growers and a new variation is being tested to make it more available to crops with shorter seasons. The Pilot A trial within the Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) is being undertaken so that crops with shorter harvest periods can access these highly motivated workers […]

If you haven’t been to Carnarvon, half way up the Western Australian coastline, you’re not alone. At 890km north of Perth, Carnarvon is pretty remote.  It is usually only visited by those travellers lucky enough to be travelling between Perth and Broome, or Perth and Darwin, on the North West Coastal Highway. The upside down […]