Australian Tuna Farming Sector Is Crying Out For Workersff

Clean Seas Tuna at Port Lincoln is struggling to find employees and expects to need another 30 to 40 people in the next year.

Chairman Hagen Stehr said the company had grown rapidly from about 20 people when it went public in 2005, to close to 200 people. “The lack of workers will bite us in the backside because everyone is screaming for people,” he said.

”We need people who want to make a new lifestyle in this region and who can integrate into the community and become part of our success story.”

Mr. Stehr said his company could pay $60,000 to $80,000 to the right people but it could not match the $120,000 being paid to some mine workers.

Clean Seas’ biggest problem is acquiring specialist workers from overseas. It also needs mechanics, fishermen, net workers and carpenters.

”If they (government) want a healthy aquaculture industry and agriculture in general, they need to take restrictions away so we can get people here faster,” Mr. Stehr said.

”We’ve got four people from Indonesia and we want another four but we can’t get them into the country. We also have some technical people we want to get here from Norway - but if we can’t get them we can’t go forward.”

An “Employment Outlook for Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing” report projects the aquaculture sector will have the second-fastest employment growth after services to agriculture.