Why recruit through the Pacific Labour Scheme?
An initiative of the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT), the PLS lets employers supplement their existing people-streams, season after season. Employers who take on workers from the scheme can also enjoy a host of other benefits.
- A stable, long-term and productive workforce who become involved in the local community.
- Access to low- and semi-skilled workers.
- No need to continuously retrain new staff.
- Workers can stay in the country for three consecutive years before leaving for a year, then returning.
What are the participating nations?
Agri Labour Australia is a pre-approved, fully compliant sponsor of the scheme, and is connected with local labour-sourcing partners and recruitment agencies in PLS-approved regions, including Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Timor-Leste, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
About PLS workers
Workers that come to Australia through the Pacific Labour Scheme are:
- 21-45 years old
- low and semi-skilled (ANZSCO levels 3-5)
- in Australia on a Temporary Work (International Relations) Visa (subclass 403)
- able to work in Australia for 1-3 years before completing a mandatory 12-month offshore period, then returning for another 1-3 years, and so on
- able to work in any areas except the following:
NSW: Sydney, Newcastle and Wollongong
QLD: Greater Brisbane and the Gold Coast
VIC: Melbourne metropolitan area
WA: Perth metropolitan area
PLS compliance
Our dedicated PLS team is aware of the regulations and legalities associated with recruiting PLS workers, and established processes ensure these are strictly adhered to. Our clients’ staffing needs and job-specific requirements determine the country and local agent selection, and all our local contacts have previous experience sourcing reliable workers for the Australian agriculture and horticulture industries.
