Manpower authorities to send 500 RI workers to Australia

The plan was discussed with the relevant parties in Australia by a delegation of the Indonesian Workers Placement and Protection Agency (BNP2 TKI) which visited Melbourne recently, minister counselor for economic affairs at the Indonesian Consulate General here, Jahar Gultom, said Thursday.

The eight-man BNP2 TKI delegation held a series of meetings with relevant parties in Victoria to explore the possibility of sending skilled and semi-skilled workers to Australia for employment as fruit pickers, construction workers, nurses, miners and Indonesian-language teachers.

The Indonesian delegation consisted of deputy of foreign cooperation and promotion Ramli Saud, deputy of workers placement Ade Adam Noch, two deputies for foreign cooperation in Asia Pacific and American regions and four staffers.

Gultom said the delegation had also met Australian immigration officials who gave them a better understanding of Australian immigration regulations affecting foreign workers to be employed in Australia.

"The delegation had productive discussions with representatives of relevant agencies in Melbourne. They gained a clear picture of the conditions relating to the mastery of English for foreign workers in this country," he said.

For half-skilled workers, the Australian government required a minimum International English Language Testing System (IELTS) score of 4.5, and for skilled workers a minimum score of 7.0.

"The English ...