The participants in this study are enrolled in the AMEP to learn English and most have been in Australia for a relatively short period of time. Nonetheless, our previous research (AMES, 2011), indicates that many in this group are keen to start work as soon as possible and this was also reflected in the data summarised below.
Overall, 35% of participants had worked in Australia. This ranged from 18% of those who have been in Australia for less than one year, to 63% for the smaller number of participants who have been here for five years or more. This is indicative of the willingness of many recently arrived people with low levels of English to combine working with their study.
Assisting people who have recently arrived in Australia to find work is a priority for AMES. A recent analysis of legal frameworks around the world noted that Australia does not necessarily tap the full potential of migrants and refugees as their labour market mobility can be limited by waiting periods to access assistance such as vocational training and Job Services Australia (Migrant Integration Policy Index, 2011).
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Participation and employment: A survey of newly arrived migrants and refugees in Melbourne
Thomas Huddleston
Policy Analyst, Migration Policy Group
Thomas Huddleston is a policy analyst at the Migration Policy Group, a European think-and-do-tank. He coordinates MPG’s research for European cooperation on national integration policies, including the second and third editions of the Migrant Integration Policy Index (MIPEX) (published in February 2011) and the third edition of the European Commission’s Handbook on Integration.
