scoa maia

In 2019, SCoA worked with the Australian Digital Health Agency to ensure Australia’s newest residents are aware of their My Health Record and what it means for them and...

In March and April 2020, the Settlement Council of Australia (SCoA) carried out a series of consultations with its members in order to gauge the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on settlement agencies and the communities they support, following the unprecedented measures taken by Federal and State governments in Australia to minimise the spread and subsequent impact of Coronavirus. This is the report of the second set of consultations held in April, which focused on workforce retention and business continuity for settlement agencies.

In March 2020, the Settlement Council of Australia (SCoA) carried out a consultation with its members in order to gauge the impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) on settlement agencies and the communities they support. This was in response to the unprecedented measures taken by the Federal and State governments in Australia to minimise the spread and subsequent impact of the Coronavirus

In January 2020, SCoA consulted with our members regarding the Australian Migrant English Program (AMEP) and English language learning for newly arrived refugees and migrants. The report from the consultations has recently been presented to the Department of Home Affairs.

This report outlines current community English language programs for adult migrants and refugees in Australia. The report analyses the views of migrant and refugee program participants of what works and what does not work. It also explores the experiences of community providers who deliver English classes to migrants and refugees daily, and often voluntary. Drawing on consultations and surveys with both providers and participants, the report offers guidance to policy makers, government and other stakeholders on how to develop successful English programs where clients’ diverse needs, backgrounds and skills are in focus. The report identifies good practice examples for consideration in future planning and discusses how community programs can overlap with or complement the Australian Government’s own funded program—the Adult Migrant English Program (AMEP). It also provides recommendations for improving the capacity of community driven English programs.

Australia is a nation of highly skilled immigrants. Unlike the majority of OECD countries where the migrant intake tends to be less qualified than the native population, the opposite is true in Australia, where 65 per cent of recent migrants possess a non-school qualification prior to arrival. Indeed, the success of Australia’s migration program is acclaimed internationally, as 91% of migrants in the labour force are employed – a trend which is virtually the same as the nativeborn population and significantly higher than the OECD average. Yet, for too long, it has been observed that many of these migrants work in jobs below their human capital capacity, as they are forced to work in low-skilled and low-paid roles with limited opportunities to progress. Various studies, including those conducted by the IOM and the OECD, report that migrant overqualification is ‘common’ in Australia, situating the rate of overqualification at over 30% of the migrant population. That is to say, that over 30% of highly skilled migrants in Australia are employed in positions below their formal qualification level, and are 42% more likely to be overqualified than their native-born counterparts.

Regional settlement has considerable benefits, with the right supports and structures in place. This submission outlines the necessary factors leading to successful regional settlement. Read the full submission below:

This submission considers the effect of the current rate of Newstart, Special Benefit and related payments on people from culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) backgrounds, particularly humanitarian entrants and other recently arrived migrants.