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Katie Woolf spoke with NT Farmers CEO Paul Burke · 360 with Katie Woolf

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: And joining us live on the line right now. NT
• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Farmers CEO Paul Burke, Good morning to you, Paul, Good.
• 0:07
  Speaker 2: Morning Katie, Good morning listeners.
• 0:08
  Speaker 3: Ate.
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  Speaker 4: Great to have you on the show.
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  Speaker 1: Yesterday we caught up with the Federal Minister David little
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  Speaker 1: Proud and spoke about the new ag visas which are
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: going to hopefully positively impact the workforce here in the
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  Speaker 1: Northern Territory, particularly in your industry of farming. What do
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: you make of those changes to the visas?
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  Speaker 2: Are we certainly very excited. We've been lobbying very hard
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  Speaker 2: with our partners in TMIA National Farmer Federation for a
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  Speaker 2: very long period to get an agricultural class leasure up
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  Speaker 2: and he's really exciting and we'll go some way to
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  Speaker 2: fixing some of our problems.
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  Speaker 1: How are things tracking at the moment for you guys, Paul,
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  Speaker 1: when it comes to some of those jobs picking and
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  Speaker 1: packing and various other jobs within the farming industry, it's.
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  Speaker 2: Really complicated, Katie. We do have a couple of planes
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  Speaker 2: coming in, the first one on the thirty first of August,
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  Speaker 2: the first one from Banuatu and the second one a
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  Speaker 2: couple of weeks later from Samoa and we've got a
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  Speaker 2: confirmed pathway for those. I guess some of the internal
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  Speaker 2: bookers are causing us a lot of issues. A lot
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  Speaker 2: of our workforce are currently picking melons in New South
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  Speaker 2: Wales or down in the River Arena working on farms
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  Speaker 2: down there, and the pathway to bring people out of
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  Speaker 2: New South Wales and Victoria is a minefield at the moment,
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  Speaker 2: So it is really complicated.
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  Speaker 4: Yeah, it would be incredibly difficult.
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  Speaker 1: You know when you talk about those lockdowns in other
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  Speaker 1: states and I haven't even thought of that. You know
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  Speaker 1: that you may have some of those workforce, well some
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  Speaker 1: of those workers actually interstate and they're not able to
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  Speaker 1: get here.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, we've got you know, roughly four to five hundred
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  Speaker 2: people in those two states that work that employers up
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  Speaker 2: here on Mango farms were relying on for their work.
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  Speaker 2: So we're trying to work through with the territory government
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  Speaker 2: at the moment to get a process in place that
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  Speaker 2: make sure territorians are protected first, and that's got to
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  Speaker 2: be our first and foremost concern. And then how do
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  Speaker 2: we actually facilitate the movement of those people. And at
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  Speaker 2: the moment it looks like they'll go through. How it springs.
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  Speaker 1: Well, one of the things that I was quite surprised
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  Speaker 1: to hear from Minister little Proud yesterday was a bit
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  Speaker 1: of a revelation you probably are well aware of it,
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  Speaker 1: but a bit of a revelation around the WA government
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  Speaker 1: potentially utilizing bladon point. Take a listen to what he
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  Speaker 1: had to say on the show yesterday.
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  Speaker 3: There's also a facilitate Bladan Point that nordn Tetrick government
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  Speaker 3: leases and it looks as over Western Australian government will
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  Speaker 3: quarantine are their grain harvest workers there. But it's come
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  Speaker 3: back to what the agreement was a national cabinet by
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  Speaker 3: First Ministers was the industry and states and territories would
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  Speaker 3: decide how it would be done. They'd share the responsibility
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  Speaker 3: and the cost of that. Great you go and look
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  Speaker 3: after it. We found twenty five thousand men and women
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  Speaker 3: from the Pacific that can come. Now we're going to
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  Speaker 3: give you find you more through the ag visa through
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  Speaker 3: Southeast Asia and the UK that can come. We will stamp
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  Speaker 3: the visas, but your chief health officers and premiers and
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  Speaker 3: chief ministers have to prove it. In Wa they have
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  Speaker 3: a risk aversion to that their Chief Health Office, so
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  Speaker 3: they've gone to your government and said, well, why can't
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  Speaker 3: we use Bladon Point And as I understand that there's
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  Speaker 3: negotiations taking place as we speak between WA and MT.
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  Speaker 3: Now whether that extends for it to remain open after
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  Speaker 3: WA use it, that's a matter for the Northern Territory
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  Speaker 3: government and Westernstralian government to get to it, to get
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  Speaker 3: to an agreement on We simply say that once you
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  Speaker 3: get an agreement you can and you can say your
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  Speaker 3: Chief Health Officers comes with it, we will stamp the visa.
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  Speaker 1: Paul, Obviously, you and I have spoken on numerous occasions
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  Speaker 1: about Bladon Points and it potentially being an option for
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  Speaker 1: NT farmers.
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  Speaker 4: Were you aware that it was.
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  Speaker 1: Going to be these negotiations on way at the moment
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  Speaker 1: for the WA government to utilize it.
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  Speaker 2: Yeah, I was certainly well aware of that, and our
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  Speaker 2: process was that just as Anti Farmers alone, we couldn't
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  Speaker 2: afford to stand that facility up. From the Anti government's
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  Speaker 2: point of view, they didn't have the resources. It's pretty
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  Speaker 2: widely publicized that they've struggled with resources for Howard Springs.
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  Speaker 2: They've done a good job of delivering Howard Springs and
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  Speaker 2: I think they should be commended for that, but we
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  Speaker 2: don't put any additional pressure. So we went out to
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  Speaker 2: all states and other territories and said, hey, we've got
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  Speaker 2: a really cool solution to the issue of quarantining people.
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  Speaker 2: And it's not something that's reserved. Is this the territory.
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  Speaker 2: It's right across Australia that we're struggling to get workers
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  Speaker 2: in through quarantine and this could be a viable option.
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  Speaker 2: So whilst WA have taken the initiative in this place
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  Speaker 2: or in this process, it will at least give us
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  Speaker 2: how you can actually do it, what resources are required
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  Speaker 2: to do it, and that will give us some advantages
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  Speaker 2: moving forward to say well we've done it once we
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  Speaker 2: know exactly what's needed and how do we resource that.
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  Speaker 2: So I think there are some positives in WA using it,
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  Speaker 2: and those common conversations are progressing from what I understand,
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  Speaker 2: and I think as late as yesterday Dan Andrews from
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  Speaker 2: Victoria was talking about the advisa and the ability to
• 5:31
  Speaker 2: be able to quarantine people. So I know that Victoria
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  Speaker 2: are looking very closely at laden point and what transpires.
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  Speaker 2: So I think if we can get a facility up
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  Speaker 2: that all states can use and we're one of those
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  Speaker 2: that will be a really positive step forward.
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  Speaker 4: Oh wouldn't it be?
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  Speaker 1: You know, it could make such a huge difference, you
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  Speaker 1: would think when it comes to to the sector right
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  Speaker 1: across Australia, I mean, is there capacity for that? Is
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  Speaker 1: there capacity realistically that we could all come together nation
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  Speaker 1: why to try to create or make Blading Point a
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  Speaker 1: place that we could actually do that?
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  Speaker 2: I think we definitely can. And I think if we
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  Speaker 2: also look outside our sector, the age care sector is
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  Speaker 2: really struggling for workforce and that is such a critical
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  Speaker 2: sector as well the hospitality and tourism industry. And Alex
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  Speaker 2: Bruce I often listen to one new show he's been
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  Speaker 2: banging on about it as well, and he's a supporter
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  Speaker 2: of bladon Point and then international students, So how are
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  Speaker 2: we going to restart our international students into CDU for
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  Speaker 2: example and create an economy. We need a pathway for
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  Speaker 2: all of these people. And How Its Brings is working
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  Speaker 2: at capacity and doing an amazing job bringing people back
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  Speaker 2: to repatriate from overseas. Australians and Olympics participants and officials
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  Speaker 2: have all gone through how It Springs, So I think
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  Speaker 2: how it Springs are serving as purpose and doing a
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  Speaker 2: great job, but how do we now complement that to
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  Speaker 2: be able to bring a mobile workforce in Because I
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  Speaker 2: think every territorium would know that every business is struggling
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  Speaker 2: at the moment with workforce. It's the biggest issue we've
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  Speaker 2: got and it's holding back our economy at the moment.
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  Speaker 4: So, Paul, where.
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  Speaker 1: Are these talks sort of realistically act? Do you think
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  Speaker 1: that this is genuinely a possibility of being able to
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  Speaker 1: happen sooner rather than later.
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  Speaker 2: Well, I think from a West Australian point of view
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  Speaker 2: that they're at a critical point. They've got a record
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  Speaker 2: grain harvest and that grain harvest worth billions of dollars,
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  Speaker 2: so they do need to find a solution. Generally, grain
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  Speaker 2: grow as a fairly were resourced. They've got a strong
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  Speaker 2: desire to create a solution to a problem that we've
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  Speaker 2: been identifying. And you know, I'm pretty proud that the
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  Speaker 2: territory has led the way again and we've been putting
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  Speaker 2: Bladen Point up a day after day and Senator Sam
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  Speaker 2: Martin and Luke Gosling have been fighting the good fight
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  Speaker 2: as well. So I think collectively across both sides of
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  Speaker 2: government I realize there's a problem, and I think, you know,
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  Speaker 2: we can come up with a really positive solution out
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  Speaker 2: of this.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, well, let's hope so, because as I said, you know,
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  Speaker 1: you and I have been discussing this for quite some time.
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  Speaker 1: I know it's something that's so high on the agenda
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  Speaker 1: for you guys. But as you've said there, it's not
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  Speaker 1: just your industry, it's other industries as well. I know
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  Speaker 1: that there will be some people listening right now who
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  Speaker 1: are thinking, well, why can't we fill these jobs and
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  Speaker 1: why can't we fill this workforce shortage with assies? But
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  Speaker 1: unfortunately these are positions that you have just not been
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  Speaker 1: able to fill. But you also need to make sure
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  Speaker 1: in some cases that they're skilled workers.
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  Speaker 2: One hundred percent agree that. So there's two components that
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  Speaker 2: there are skill shortages that can't be addressed in the
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  Speaker 2: short term, and that's you know that that's just the
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  Speaker 2: way it is. But I think for some of those
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  Speaker 2: entry level positions that we haven't been able to feel,
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  Speaker 2: we've got so much data now that says we won't
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  Speaker 2: fill them from Australian people, and I think most listeners
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  Speaker 2: now would accept out with paid bonuses, with paid relocation
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  Speaker 2: allowances and that just hasn't delivered the amount of workforce
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  Speaker 2: that we need. So you know, we've got to be
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  Speaker 2: a realist in this place and you know, our short
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  Speaker 2: term jobs and not everyone wants to go and pick
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  Speaker 2: mangoes in forty five degrees. As much as it is
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  Speaker 2: fun and you do get to meet new people, it
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  Speaker 2: is really hard work. So I think we need to
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  Speaker 2: be realistic and so, well there's a job there if
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  Speaker 2: you are in Australia that a lot of Australians don't
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  Speaker 2: want to do that work.
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  Speaker 1: Well, Paul Burke, it is always good to catch up
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  Speaker 1: with you. I really appreciate your time this morning. Thanks
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  Speaker 1: so much for you know, giving us a bit of
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  Speaker 1: clarity I think on that blatant point situation, because when
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  Speaker 1: I first heard it, I thought, oh goodness, mee wa
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  Speaker 1: stepping in and using our bloody facility when our farmers
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  Speaker 1: have been fighting for it.
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  Speaker 4: But you know, if we're all able.
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  Speaker 1: To sort of to do this together I think as
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  Speaker 1: Ossie's and try to fill some of these jobs where
• 9:52
  Speaker 1: you guys have really been struggling to fill them. Hopefully
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  Speaker 1: it can be a good thing.
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  Speaker 2: Well hopefully it's about the territory showing leadership in the
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  Speaker 2: space and us all coming together as Australian it's not
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  Speaker 2: us territorians, and I think we've got to start to
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  Speaker 2: do that a lot more if we're going to get
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  Speaker 2: out of the place we've been in for such a
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  Speaker 2: long period of time.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah, Paul Burke, thanks so much for your time this morning.
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  Speaker 2: Mate, all right, I appreciate it. And what a great
• 10:18
  Speaker 2: rain we had last night.
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  Speaker 4: Oh wasn't it lovely?
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: What does that mean for our you know, for our
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: farmers if we do have that early onset of the
• 10:24
  Speaker 1: wet season, is it a good thing?
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  Speaker 4: I mean, I know it's still early days.
• 10:27
  Speaker 2: Paul, it's early days, but it gives people a springing
• 10:31
  Speaker 2: their step. And I guess it depends what industry you're
• 10:33
  Speaker 2: working in. If you're just about to pick mangos, you're
• 10:35
  Speaker 2: probably less thankful. But if you're just about to planning
• 10:39
  Speaker 2: a paddic of hay, you're probably doing cartweel's up and
• 10:42
  Speaker 2: down beside the tractor at the moment.
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  Speaker 1: Oh, good stuff. Well, always good to speak to you.
• 10:47
  Speaker 1: Thank you so much for your time this morning.
• 10:49
  Speaker 2: Thanks Katie, Thank you.
• 10:51
  Speaker 4: Paul Burke. There the CEO of in tea farmers,