The National Employment Centre (NEC), part of the Ministry of Employment, Productivity, and Workplace Relations, is currently working on applications submitted in 2021. During a recent submission regarding the review of the 2022 Audit Report on the General Administration Sector, permanent secretary Maritino Nemani revealed that new registrations have been halted due to nearly 30,000 applications pending from 2020.
Nemani stated, “We are in the process of reviewing and filtering the applications of those who registered earlier.” He added that the processing of 2021 applications is underway and that the registration period has been extended to the following year.
Regarding employment under the Pacific Labour Mobility scheme and Regional Seasonal Employment (RSE), Nemani emphasized that it is up to employers to select candidates for job positions. He noted, “Care giving, like agriculture, meat processing, and hospitality, falls under similar requirements, as it depends on the employer in Australia to choose their employees.”
He explained that employers conduct interviews and make selections, while the NEC’s role is to facilitate this process. For care giving, recognized training is provided by APTC, which accredits workers looking to work overseas. Ultimately, the responsibility for hiring lies with employers overseas, as they decide which candidates to take.