Understanding DAMA - How Australia meets its extra labor needs

Understanding the DAMA gives you more insight into how the governments of specific regions including states, territories, and regional bodies in Australia find more human resources to fill the labor market requirements.

DAMA is a formal agreement between the Commonwealth of Australia and a DAR. It allows the DAR to access more overseas workers from a broader range of occupational areas than is available via standard skilled visa programs. The DAR could be the government of a state or territory or a regional body.

The access to more foreign workers is facilitated by allowing a variation to standard jobs and skillsets listed and/or concessions that are negotiable, to visa requirements. The request for a DAMA is accepted subjectively after considering the particular needs of a geographical region. The negotiations on concessions and terms of a DAMA is made with the Commonwealth of Australia.

For the development and implementation of DAMAs, broad stakeholder engagement and consultations are encouraged. However, the governments of a state or territory of Australia needn’t formally endorse the DAMA unless that region is the DAR.

DAMA is very similar to LMIA in Canada. In order for a DAMA to be approved, the DAR must make a demonstrated effort to employ Australians first. The cap on the number of annually employed overseas workers along with the local support made available to migrant workers must be made clear. Management and monitoring of the activities under the DAMA must be in place.

After the DAMA is made, the DAR assesses local employers. Employers who are endorsed can submit applications to enter into individual labor agreements subject to the conditions agreed on. It’s these labor agreements that let the employers access semi-skilled and skilled candidates to work in Australia. For this, the Permanent Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) and the Temporary Skill Shortage visa (Subclass 482) can be used.

The currently active DAMAs are:

• The Orana region DAMA
  • 73 occupations available
  • Skills, salary, English, work experience, and permanent pathway concessions available
• The Northern Territory DAMA II
  • 117 occupations available
  • Salary and English proficiency concessions for certain occupations
• The Far North Queensland DAMA
  • 70 occupations available
  • Skills, salary, experience, permanent pathway, and English concessions for certain occupations
• The Adelaide City Technology & Innovation Advancement DAMA (Metro)
  • 63 occupations available
  • Age, English, permanent residency pathway, and salary, concessions
• The South Australian Regional Workforce DAMA (Regional)
  • 137 occupations available
  • Age, English, permanent residency pathway, and salary concessions
• The Victoria’s Great South Coast DAMA
  • 27 occupations available
  • Skills, English, experience, permanent pathway, and salary concessions for certain occupations
• The Goldfields DAMA
  • 72 occupations available
  • Salary, permanent pathway, and English concessions for certain occupations

Steps in the DAMA application process

1. The employer (the sponsoring business) applies for endorsement to the relevant DAR.
2. The DAR assesses the application for endorsement.
3. A positive assessment by the DAR results in the issue of a letter of endorsement to the employer. The Department is notified.
4. The sponsoring business applies to enter into an individual DAMA labor agreement with the Department.
5. The Department does an assessment of the application for DAMA.
6. On getting a positive result from the Department, the employer can move on to lodge a nomination for the employee. The employee can also submit an application for Australia work permit with the Department under the labor agreement stream.

Thus, Australia manages the labor requirements for its states and regions when more is needed to achieve desired labor market results.

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Note:

DAMA - Designated Area Migration Agreements

DAR – Designated Area Representative