Workforce challenges and migrant labour
Andrew R. Timming is a Professor of Human Resource Management, Deputy Dean Research & Innovation, School of Management, RMIT University (0403456443 or andrew.timming@rmit.edu.au)
“The food supply chain has been particularly susceptible to the pandemic, and especially the Omicron variant. As it spreads across Australia like a wildfire, an already strained system has been pushed to a breaking point.
“Our food supply chain is highly dependent on migrant labour. Migrants have traditionally played a huge role, from picking produce to transporting it across the country. With the abrupt closure of our borders in 2020, that supply has been cut off. This, coupled with the strict rules surrounding isolation and quarantine, has created the perfect storm we are experiencing today. There are plenty of low wage jobs to go around and not nearly enough people willing or able to fill them.
“One potential solution to future shocks lies in the automation of tasks. Already we have the technology to deploy self-driving trucks that can transport goods across the country with zero COVID-19 risk.
“More importantly, the lesson in the current supply chain crisis is that we should be looking towards more sustainable, locally sourced food. I grow my own vegetables in my backyard, so I am largely unaffected by the empty shelves at the supermarket.
Urban fringe critical to future food supply
Andrew Butt is an Associate Professor in Sustainability and Urban Planning in the School of Global, Urban and Social Studies (GUSS) and the Centre for Urban Research (CUR) at RMIT. He is also the co-author of The Future of the Fringe: The Crisis in Peri-Urban Planning, with RMIT Emeritus Professor Michael Buxton. (0408 369 097 or andrew.butt@rmit.edu.au)
"There are obviously a number of factors currently impacting food supply, but I think it is fair to say that we should not expect that long food supply chains that rely on interstate and international supply, are going to work all the time and if we are relying heavily on this chain of supply we are going to be vulnerable to the kinds of issues we are currently facing.
“One of the major challenges of our food supply chain, even before the pandemic, is finding a labour force for picking and packing and the like in more remote areas. So, already we were facing the challenge of having to bring in workers from the Pacific Islands and backpackers and so forth because access to labour in these remote areas is more challenging. These challenges have been exacerbated by COVID.
“This is why good metropolitan planning and peri-urban planning needs to recognise the importance of having local food systems within metropolitan regions.
“By not recognising that a city like Melbourne can use peri-urban land for food production and presuming it can be done elsewhere, we’re creating a more fragile food system.
“We are going to be vulnerable to other shocks in the future and the most obvious one is living under climate change.
“If we continue to rely largely on food production that relies primarily on the Murray-Darling basin then our food supply is going to become less reliable. We are losing a great resource if we’re not thinking about land water reuse around our cities. That's what we should be planning for."
‘Coopetition' could help remedy food shortage challenges
Associate Professor Vinh Thai, is an expert in supply chain and logistics from RMIT University’s School of Accounting, Information Systems and Supply Chain, and founder of the Australian Maritime Logistics Research Network (vinh.thai@rmit.edu.au)
“While the problems with international supply chains may not be resolved within a short period of time, probably not until the end of this year, domestically, the federal and state governments have been taking measures to ease the problem of shortage of workers.
“It is therefore possible that these problems may be eased in the next few weeks, depending on how quickly these changes will be implemented. Together with some controls being in place, such as limits imposed by supermarkets, it is unlikely that these problems will get worse.
“From the demand side i.e. shoppers/consumers, we should be buying only what we need for our weekly necessities.
“I feel that more can be done from the supply side too. For example, more collaboration and coordination can be implemented between retailers i.e. supermarkets who are typically rivals. Coopetition i.e. cooperation and competition could be considered.
“For example, a “food map platform” can be established, where supermarkets can share data on their inventories, and provide customers with information on the availability of some products at the stores, not only their own, but also at those of the others, across locations. This will make customers happy, of course, but at the same time, stores’ revenue may increase with complementary sales across retailers.”
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