The Social Impacts of Seasonal Migration : Lessons from Australia’s Seasonal Worker Program for Pacific Islanders
The Seasonal Worker Program (SWP) is a temporary migration scheme between Australia and selected Pacific Island Countries. It was introduced in 2012 and covers the agriculture, accommodation and tourism sectors. Extensive efforts have been made to...
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| Language: | English |
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World Bank, Sydney
2018
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| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/816101528777323284/The-social-impacts-of-seasonal-migration-lessons-from-Australia-s-seasonal-worker-program-for-Pacific-Islanders http://hdl.handle.net/10986/30010 |
| Summary: | The Seasonal Worker Program (SWP) is a
temporary migration scheme between Australia and selected
Pacific Island Countries. It was introduced in 2012 and
covers the agriculture, accommodation and tourism sectors.
Extensive efforts have been made to evaluate the economic
impacts of the scheme, but there is a lack of evidence on
the social impacts emanating from the extended absences of
key family members. Moreover, of the 17,320 workers who have
participated in the program since its inception, only 13.7
percent have been women. There are gaps in understanding
around the gendered impact of the program and the
constraints that prevent women from accessing the SWP. Based
on a focus on the two largest participating countries in the
scheme, Tonga and Vanuatu, this paper aims to: (i) assess
both positive and negative social impacts of seasonal
migration and explore how negative consequences can be
mitigated; and (ii) examine the experience of women in the
program, explore the barriers to access and put forward a
set of recommendations to increase the female participation rate. |
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