Report: Australia in No. 2 Destination for Foreign Jobseekers

Next to the United States, Australia is the preferred destination of foreign jobseekers, according to the Global Professionals on the Move 2012 report released on Thursday.

Commissioned by the company, Hydrogen Group, the report explained Australia's attractiveness to its lifestyle and high standard of living and career prospects brought by the mining boom. At present, there are 404 natural resources projects in Australia worth $340 billion, which would create a lot of work opportunities.

Hydrogen Managing Director for Australia Ivan Jackson said the shortage of skilled professionals would hinder these projects. He disclosed that many oil and gas ventures are now at a point where it will need several thousands of extra workers.

Mr Jackson forecast the recruitment to Australia would reach a peak in the next two to three years.

For foreign workers who are considering applying for these posts, Mr Jackson emphasised that overseas experienced is given a premium by Australian companies, particularly in the energy sector. He disclosed that one of the reasons why people take up mining jobs is to have the chance to work overseas.

About 90 per cent of the respondents said that working abroad boosts their personal development, 86 per cent added it improved their career paths and 83 per cent reported salary increased due to their overseas job stint.

The survey has 2,353 professionals from 85 countries. It was conducted by ESCP Europe School of Management.

However, the report also found that the attractiveness of the western countries is waning. Only 13 per cent of the respondents picked the U.S. as their top choice compared to 18 per cent in 2011. The other top destinations, UK and Australia, logged 1 and 2 per cent drops in their attractiveness to foreign jobseekers while the continent of Africa got an 8 per cent response from almost zero in past surveys.

One possible explanation for the waning popularity of the U.S. and Australia are their stringent visa controls, which ESCP Europe visiting professor Raymond Madden identified as one of the key findings of the report.