Noosa News
Would-be fruit picker calls for more flexible hiring practices as growers seek answers to worker shortage
An unemployed man who says he would be willing to “live out of his car” to get a fruit-picking job is calling for the industry to be more open-minded as it seeks to solve its 26,000-worker shortage.
Key points:
- Scott Watson has been rejected from fruit-picking jobs in multiple states, despite the industry facing a shortfall of 26,000 workers
- Most farms source their workers through job placement agencies rather than direct approaches from applicants
- A Southern Downs grower finds offering incentives, plus a more flexible approach to hiring help, helps buck the national trend of labour shortages
Scott Watson, 53, said he had contacted about a dozen companies in Queensland, New South Wales and Victoria, several of which he had seen quoted in…
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