By Michele Lawrence, Tasmanian dairy farmer, TasFarmers Dairy Council member and Chair ADF People and Communities Policy Advisory Group
Labour is one of dairy farming’s most critical inputs, so Australian Dairy Farmers (ADF) welcomed the opportunity to give evidence to the Federal Parliament’s inquiry into the value of skilled migration in May.
Dairy farms operate every day of the year. Cows must be milked, herds managed, and farm systems run continuously.
Keeping these operations running is no small feat, so skilled migration has become an important complement to the domestic workforce.
Many dairy regions are experiencing very tight labour markets, ageing populations and ongoing skill shortages, so skilled migration provides much-needed support to the workforce.
That reality underpinned ADF’s submission to the inquiry.
It was also the focus of the evidence I presented alongside Nathan Pope, ADF Policy Manager, to the parliamentary committee.
We reiterated the $18.5 billion economic contribution Australian dairy makes to the national economy, along with its role as a major exporter supplying more than 100 markets. The survival of dairy as a major economic driver relies on a sustainable workforce.
The challenge facing the dairy industry is not simply filling vacancies but finding the right people with the right skills at the right time.
The labour shortages in dairy are structural. Regional labour markets are already tight, with unemployment in key dairying regions well below national averages, and there is a persistent shortfall in domestic workers with relevant skills.
This means farmers are already competing over a limited workforce.
As I told the inquiry, without access to suitable workers, dairy cannot grow. We do not simply need more workers; we need stable long-term workforce capability in regional Australia to help combat the training fatigue felt by farmers.
A sustainable workforce is therefore not just about the survival of Australian dairy businesses, but also about Australia’s food security.
Migration, in this context, is not a substitute for local labour but a necessary complement.
ADF’s submission to the inquiry (which can be found on its website) points to growing reliance on overseas workers, with 42 per cent of farms using migrant labour in 2024 compared to 18 per cent in 2020.
Farms draw on a mix of pathways, from working holiday makers to employer-sponsored visas, because they must use every available migration mechanism to maintain operations.
However, it is clear the current system is not delivering effectively. As we repeated throughout the hearing, dairy needs the right people at the right time with the right skills, but existing visa settings are too slow, complex and poorly aligned with real workforce needs.
A core concern for ADF is that the migration framework has not kept pace with modern dairy skills requirements.
While the occupation of Dairy Cattle Farmer has historically been recognised, other critical roles (such as Senior Dairy Cattle Farm Worker) have not been consistently included in standard visa pathways, despite requiring substantial technical skill.
As a result, dairy businesses are often forced to rely on bespoke and regionally limited arrangements such as labour agreements and Designated Area Migration Agreements, which are administratively complex and geographically constrained.
ADF and TasFarmers have called for a more streamlined and responsive system that better reflects industry realities.
Central to this is recognising a broader range of dairy roles as skilled occupations and incorporating them into mainstream visa programs. This would reduce reliance on fragmented pathways and allow farms to access workers more efficiently.
As I stated during the hearing, we completely undervalue the skill it takes to cup cows and the importance to milk quality and animal welfare.
Dairy businesses are not simply seeking short-term labour; they need experienced employees who can develop skills over time and, in many cases, progress into management roles.
As evidence to the inquiry highlighted, many migrant workers have successfully followed these pathways, contributing to the long-term viability of the industry and regional communities.
We are therefore advocating for clearer and more accessible pathways to permanent residency, which would provide certainty for both employers and workers.
Models in comparable countries, such as New Zealand and Canada, demonstrate how work-to-residence pathways can help attract and retain skilled agricultural workers.
Finally, we raised concerns about the broader policy settings surrounding migration and training.
The message from ADF to the inquiry is clear: skilled migration is essential to sustaining dairy production, supporting regional communities and maintaining Australia’s food security. But to deliver these outcomes, the system must be better aligned with industry needs, more efficient in its administration, and more transparent in its outcomes.