Supporting visible migrants

Volume 8 Number 3 March 12 - April 8 2012

Government services need to do more for new and arguably more ‘visible’ migrants and refugees, according to a new study by Dr Millsom Henry-Waring and Professor Brian Galligan from the University of Melbourne’s School of Social and Political Sciences. Dr Henry-Waring explains key findings and recommendations.

Government support and services need to be more co-ordinated and proactive rather than reactive, particularly for people from the Horn of Africa, the Middle East and South-East Asia, according to recommendations from a recent investigation I conducted with Professor Brian Galligan into the resettlement of ‘visible’ migrants and refugees in Victoria’s regional areas.

During our study we interviewed migrants and refugees in rural/regional and metropolitan areas of Victoria and also spoke with representatives of Federal, State and Local Government, as well as non-government agencies working in multicultural and settlement services across eight Victorian regions (Monash, Maribyrnong, Colac, Geelong, Latrobe, Mt Alexander, Swan Hill and Ballarat).

Analysing the resettlement process is complex as it focuses on subjective issues such as identity and belonging, as well as the more practical aspects of finding a good job and access to schools, housing and transport.

When exploring resettlement subjectively, for these particular sets of migrants and refugees, their visibility (in terms of race, culture, colour, language and accent as different from popular perceptions of what it means to be Australian) was something they had in common.

They understood that they stood out. What they did not appreciate was whether this led to their social exclusion wittingly or not. After all, most Australians don’t distinguish between migrants and refugees. More often than not, they are treated similarly.

At times, this can be positive (as was evidenced by the openness of many rural and regional communities in Victoria), but it can also be negative. Despite the negatives, the overwhelming majority of visible migrants and refugees we interviewed want to be acknowledged for their distinctive cultures, knowledges and skills, and to feel that they belong and can fully participate in the wider Australian community at all levels.

In terms of the more practical aspects of resettlement, one of the interim findings showed that a key aspect that affected resettlement for skilled migrants and refugees was the difficulty of securing work in regional Victorian communities, despite there being a governmental push and a real need for specialised skills and experience.

Government policy at all levels and across party lines has proactively targeted skilled migrants, and some refugees, to come and settle in regional Victoria, but the reality is that when they arrive it’s very difficult for them to secure jobs in the area in which they have trained.

As a result, there is a breakdown in what government policy is advocating and what is actually happening on the ground. Arriving to find there is no targeted on-ground support with job assistance is clearly a common problem for skilled migrants, who seem to be expected to arrive in Australia and basically fend for themselves.

In one instance, an Iraqi English lecturer who moved outside metropolitan Victoria found himself in what must have been an extremely demoralising situation when after 200 job applications over two months – including one as a parking inspector – he didn’t even get to the interview stage. Stories like this are not uncommon.

There really needs to be better access to mainstream support services for migrants and refugees. A mentoring program could be extremely helpful, and a website that lists prospective employers to match people’s skills and experiences with local jobs would be tremendously useful.

Final results and recommendations from the study are due in March 2013.
http://www.ssps.unimelb.edu.au/