Kelvin Thomson (Wills, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

asked the Minister representingtheMinister for Employment, in writing, on 14 November 2014:

(1) In respect of the Deakin University's Centre for Research in Educational Futures and Innovation's report Australian international graduates and the transition to employment (September 2014), is he aware that the findings illustrate that (a) the overseas student program needs to be reviewed by the Australian Government to provide greater opportunity for Australian graduates to find work domestically, (b) the graduate labour market in Australia in the three disciplines of nursing, engineering and accounting is very competitive, (c) the proportion of bachelor degree graduates employed within four months of completing their courses has fallen to 71.3 per cent, the lowest figure in over 20 years, and what action will the Minister take to address this issue, (d) shortages for engineers eased significantly in 2012-13 and are now limited to petroleum and mining engineers, and (e) a slowdown in the mining industry, as well as manufacturing, and subdued activity in construction, are contributing to a weak labour market.(2) Does the Minister accept the report's findings that employment outcomes for graduate engineers have weakened in recent years with softer market conditions, resulting in graduates competing for work with experienced engineers, with BHP, Rio Tinto and AECOM cutting their graduate intakes.

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