Tapping into the labour mobility market to fill ongoing workforce gaps

Australia’s health and aged care providers are under considerable pressure to deliver high-quality care with increasingly short-staffed teams. The Managing Director of a strategic immigration and talent mobility agency builds a case for how to harness international talent in the service of local needs.

Workforce shortages are no longer a future concern, they are currently impacting budgets, staff wellbeing, wait times, continuity of care and patient outcomes. These pressures are particularly acute in regional and rural areas, where local labour is often too limited to meet demand. When permanent roles cannot be filled, organisations turn to agency staff to keep essential services running. This may solve an immediate roster problem, but it rarely provides a sustainable, long-term answer.

Agency labour is expensive, unpredictable and can reduce continuity of care. In aged care, particularly where relationships and familiarity matter, constantly changing staff can negatively affect the experience of residents and families. This is why healthcare leaders and government should be looking more seriously at international talent mobility as part of long-term workforce planning to secure essential services for Australians.

Labour mobility is not a quick fix

International talent mobility is not just a short-term response to a skills shortage. It works best when treated as a strategic lever and a long-term workforce investment. The key question to ask before recruiting internationally is where the pressure sits within the organisation and map those roles to the markets where skills are recognised and transferrable, and migration pathways available.

Consider whether the gaps are driven by the location, qualification requirements, workforce burnout or local demographics such as an aging population. This ensures the workforce strategy is proactively addressing these factors rather than operating reactively. Once your workforce needs are mapped, a qualified immigration and mobility partner can support your HR team to source qualified, job-ready and visa-eligible talent.

Talent mobility is not a substitute for domestic recruitment and training efforts. Instead, it operates adjacent to these efforts by helping organisations fill roles that cannot be reliably sourced from the local market.

Choosing the right migration program settings

Tapping into the international labour market effectively requires a migration-led approach to ensure all core eligibility requirements are considered when shortlisting candidates. In addition, international recruitment in overseas markets is often regulated and can only be undertaken by licensed providers.

Healthcare providers should explore high-potential countries with a surplus of skilled talent, with mutual skills recognition frameworks, strong healthcare systems, English-language proficiency and workers who are genuinely committed to a career in the healthcare industry and prepared to relocate for the long term. This is especially important in regional and rural locations, where settlement factors such as housing, transport, schools, family employment and social connection, and availability of permanent residency pathways can determine whether an international worker stays long-term.

Health and aged care employers need to navigate visas, professional registration, skills testing, sponsorship obligations, compliance, timing and costs. Receiving strategic advice upfront, and proactive support during the process, enables organisations to understand the risks and maximise investment with confidence.

A sustainable talent strategy is diverse and avoids over-reliance on one country or recruitment channel. Having a multi-channel approach to recruitment which includes international options reduces exposure to sudden policy or labour market changes.

Why talent mobility corridors matter

Mobility corridors are effective as they create more predictable avenues between countries with available skilled workers and sectors in Australia experiencing persistent shortages. In practice, this entails building repeatable systems for sourcing, assessing, sponsoring, relocating and supporting international workers.

This enables health and aged care providers to shift from one-off hires to a more reliable talent pipeline. Stable staffing plays a significant role in reducing pressure on existing teams, improving continuity of care and limiting reliance on expensive agency labour.

Upskilling must be built in

It is vital that workers are supported to convert their international qualifications and experience into the Australian work environment. Upskilling should cover clinical expectations, communication, compliance, documentation, cultural differences, workplace health and safety, and local models of care. This should begin prior to arrival and continue through structured onboarding, mentoring and professional development.

Retention is key to this model; it is not simply about meeting standards. Workers who feel supported, capable and able to progress are significantly more likely to stay. Employers also gain more value from their investment when international talent is given clear pathways to build skills and take on greater responsibility over time.

Retention depends on settlement

The most successful talent mobility programs recognise and acknowledge that workers are people, not just visa holders. Relocating for work often means moving families, adapting to a new culture and building a daily life. If employers want international staff to remain, they must think beyond the workplace.

This can include, but is not limited to, assisting with accommodation, local transport allowances, community introductions, partner employment, school enrolments, and practical assistance such as driving lessons or general access to local services. Although they can seem like minor details, they often determine whether or not a worker feels genuinely welcomed.

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What leaders should do now

For healthcare leaders looking to scale talent mobility programs, the best possible advice is to start early, plan properly and think long-term.

Organisations should begin by analysing their workforce needs, understanding their visa options and building a business case. The business case should account for more than the upfront cost of recruitment, factoring in the ongoing financial and operational impact of unfilled roles, agency reliance, overtime pressures, staff burnout and disrupted service delivery.

Leaders should ensure they choose experienced immigration partners, recruit from appropriate and diverse talent markets with established mobility programs, and invest in onboarding, upskilling and settlement support from the start.

The results can be transformational. International recruitment has the potential to reduce reliance on costly agency labour, strengthen workforce stability and improve continuity of care for residents and families.

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Australia’s health and aged care workforce shortages cannot be solved through local recruitment alone. International talent mobility is not the entire answer, but when done strategically, it can help providers reduce pressure, stabilise care teams, and improve outcomes for patients, residents and staff.

*Sarah Thapa is founder and Managing Director of The Migration Agency.

Top image credit: iStock.com/Milan Markovic