Impact of Occupational English Test on Migrant Doctors' and. Nurses'
Registration by Select Birthplace in Australia: 6 Years of Data (Hawthorne & Toth
1996).
Mandatory English Language Testing for Skilled Migration to Australia
Lesleyanne Hawthorne Australia-Canada Round Table on Foreign Qualification Recognition Public Policy Forum Melbourne April 12-15 2011
Employment Barriers for Skilled Migrants in the Knowledge Economy: The Research Evidence
1. English/ effective communication skills in a ‘lean’ workforce without ‘backroom’ jobs 2. Credential recognition 3. Technological ‘fit’ (eg engineering, medicine, nursing) 4. Ancillary professional knowledge:
Management style Industrial relations/union issues Occupational health and safety Duty of care (etc)
5. Interview style (type and location of information) 6. Supply and demand in the Australian workforce (‘niche’ economies) Source: Labour Market Barriers for Immigrant Engineers in Australia, L Hawthorne, Australian Government Publishing Service, 1994
The Research Evidence on Poor English in Australia: 3 Decades 1980s:
Inferior employment rates and work status: Achieved by non-English speaking background (NESB) migrants in Australia (despite higher qualifications)
Recessions: Particularly vulnerable in terms of employment
Poor English language competence: Doubles or triples male unemployment; double it for females
Key unemployment predictors: English language ability, birthplace, period of residence in Australia, and the country in which formal qualifications had been gained
Credential recognition: Greatly reduced by poor English
1990s:
Poor English = ‘An awesome and devastating barrier’ at every stage of the employment life cycle in Australia
As education level increases: The labour market position of immigrants vis a vis the Australian-born systematically deteriorates (etc!)
English Language Training Model:
Federal: Policy/ funding/ Subnational: Delivery
Adult Migrant English Program (1947+):
1980s: Skilled migrant learner pathways
General English x4English for Nurses (1) English for Nurses (2) Competency-based bridging course for nurses (x 3 months) registration
Electrical linesman: Italy
By 2009-10: 50,000 clients per year, 193 countries, 250 locations, 510 hours per client or functional English
Focus: English and labour market programs
Reach: 90% of refugees, 55% of family migrants, 41% of skilled migrants
Cost:
By mid 1990s: Over $200 million per year
DEEWR:
Bridging programs with English
English/ vocational exam preparation (2011): 15 fields - architects, dentists, doctors, nurses, pharmacists, physiotherapists etc)
Evolution of Mandatory English Language Testing: Economic Category Migrants and Mandatory for Registration in Select Fields - National Health professions:
Post-war years: ‘Purple prose and Shakespeare’s sonnets’
1989 – Occupational English Test (OET)
13 fields Field-specific – face validity Twice per year Global administration
Teaching (1990s):
‘Invisibility’: Eclectic processes
Other professions/ trades:
‘Self report’ – until 1993
Case study: Yugoslav mechanical engineer
1993 – Broader range of economic occupations (100+)
1996 – Universal English testing (economic category)
Tests: ‘Access’ test IELTS (monopoly) broader tests?
Case Study 1: Impact of Occupational English Test on Migrant Nurse and Physician Registration
Migrant nurses:
67% fail overseas
41% fail in Australia
Migrant doctors:
Around 40% of candidates fail or are significantly delayed in proceeding to pre-registration assessments
Latest data?
Impact of Occupational English Test on Migrant Doctors’ and Nurses’ Registration by Select Birthplace in Australia: 6 Years of Data (Hawthorne & Toth 1996)
Candidates in Australia (%)
Pass Rate (All %)
Total No.
79 99 96 82 66
91 59 77 84 78
200 191 133 126 93
32 38 57 96 40
41 50 55 35 70
413 96 51 51 37
Doctors India China Former USSR Egypt Philippines
Nurses Philippines Hong Kong India Former Yugos. Fiji
Number of OET Attempts Required - Medical Candidates1989-1995 (Hawthorne & Toth 1996)
Number of Attempts 1 2 3 4 5 or more Total
Pass (% of all candidates) 57.4 16.6 2.6 1.4 0.2 78.3
Fail (% of all candidates)
Total Candidates n
16.2 3.5 1.3 0.3 0.2 21.6
1532 419 82 36 10 2079
The Impact of OET Testing on Medical Candidates: Gender (1989-1996 Data: Hawthorne & Toth 1996)
Candidates Male candidates Female candidates All candidates
Pass % 75
Average No. Attempts 1.4
In Australia % 73.5
Overseas % 26.5
Total No. 1149
82
1.3
85.6
14.4
930
78
1.35
78.9
21.1
2079
Case Study 2: General Skilled Migrants (All Fields)
Impact of mandatory English language testing:
No reduction in demand for economic migration growth!
No reduction in source country diversity
Selection = identical source countries – but migrants with far better English
Early Impact of Australia’s Selection Changes - % of Skilled Migrants Employed 6 Months Post-Arrival by Select Country (1993-5 Compared to 1999/2000)
Birthplace of Skill Principal Applicants UK/Ireland South Africa North West Europe Philippines India HK/Malaysia/Singapore China M East/ N Africa N, SE & C Asia Eastern Europe
Employment Within 6 Months (1993-95 Arrivals) 85% 76% 73% 57% 56% 53% 45% 42% 40% 31%
Employment Within 6 Months (1999-2000 Arrivals) 86% 89% 83% 76% 73% 68% 61% 72% 77% 79%
Source: Labour Market Outcomes for Migrant Professionals: Canada and Australia Compared, L Hawthorne, Statistics Canada, Ottawa, 2007
Economic Migration Source Countries (Permanent Versus Temporary) 2004-05 to 2008-09 Permanent (government) selection:
8/10 = Asia
ESB countries = 17%
India (21%), China (18%), UK (14%), Malaysia (6%), Indonesia (4%), Sri Lanka (3%), Republic of Korea (3%), South Africa (3%), Hong Kong SAR (3%) , Singapore (3%)
Temporary (employer) selection 2004/05 to 2008/09:
5/10 = English-speaking background countries (42%), 2/10 = OECD European countries (5%) = 47%
UK (22%), India (13%), South Africa (8%), Philippines (7%), China (6%), USA (6%), Ireland (3%), Canada (3%), Germany (3%), France (2%)
Case Study 3: International Students and English Language Testing 1999+:
Removal of 3 year eligibility and professional experience requirement for international students
Applications on-shore (at point of course completion)
‘Win-win’ – boost to Australia’s export education industry
Assumed attraction to employers: Local qualifications, experience, good English, acculturated, prime workforce age
Exempted from English language testing – gain maximum points as condition of university entry
Source: Review of the Independent and Skilled-Australian Linked Categories, Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs, Canberra (1999)
International Student Response to Skill Migration Opportunity in Australia by 2004 18,000 15,000
Other occupations 12,000
Tradespersons 9,000 6,000
Professionals
3,000
Managers 0
Offshore
Onshore
International Student Employment and Wage Outcomes @ 6 Months (2006) Former students = 83% employed – but!
Annual salaries - around $33,000 (compared to $52,500 for offshore arrivals);
Average weekly earnings - $641 (compared to $1,015);
Lower job satisfaction - 44 per cent like their work (compared to 57 per cent)
Far less ‘often’ use of formal qualifications in current work - 46 per cent compared to 63 per cent
Source: B Birrell, L Hawthorne & S Richardson (2006), Evaluation of the General Skilled Migration Categories, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra
English Scores of Former International Students After Completing Australian Degrees When Applying for Economic Migration
Source Country
China India Indonesia Malaysia Hong Kong South Korea Singapore Bangladesh Sri Lanka Japan Taiwan Pakistan Thailand Vietnam
ESL Points: 15 (IELTS 5) 2004-05 43% 5% 16% 16% 17% 23% 10% 23% 10% 18% 24% 9% 29% 36%
ESL Points: 15 (IELTS 5) 2005-06 43% 17% 32% 24% 43% 56% 18% 42% 25% 37% 47% 25% 51% 33%
ESL Points: 20 (IELTS 6) 2004-05 56% 94% 84% 84% 83% 76% 90% 77% 90% 82% 76% 90% 70% 64%
ESL Points: 20 (IELTS 6) 2005-06 57% 82% 68% 76% 57% 44% 82% 58% 75% 63% 53% 75% 49% 67%
Total Tested 2004-05
Total Tested 2005-06
2,655 2,433 1,408 1,113 863 474 440 436 360 248 231 224 200 200
4,209 2,169 749 797 683 449 258 479 346 174 133 141 175 152
Impact of English Level on Employment of Economic Migrants 6 Months Post-Arrival (2006)
90% 80%
89% 86%
English Only or Best English Well
76%
English Very Well English Not Well
70% 59%
60% 50% 40%
27%
30% 18%
20% 7%
10%
9%
12% 4%
4%
6%
0% Employed
Unemployed
Not in Labour Force
Employment ‘Protection’ of Australian Qualifications by Select Birthplace Group (6 Months Post-Migration) – Onshore vs Offshore Skilled Migrants
Country/ Region ESB Europe India N Africa/ Middle East Other Asia China
Visa Status Onshore Offshore Onshore Offshore Onshore Offshore Onshore Offshore Onshore Offshore Onshore Offshore
Employed
Unemployed
NILF
86.7 92.9 91.2 91.7 92.2 91.1 89.5 71.4 87.6 80.0 74.8 54.7
7.2 1.8 5.3 5.6 7.3 5.9 10.5
6.0 5.3 3.5 2.8 0.6 3.0
6.9 12.2 10.9 27.4
28.6 5.6 7.8 14.3 17.9
Source: Derived from LSIA 3 database (DIAC); for full data see Key Factors Influencing the English Language Proficiency, Workplace Readiness and Employment Outcomes of International Students, S Arkoudis, L Hawthorne, C Baik, G Hawthorne, K O’Loughlin, E Bexley & D Leach, Department of Employment, Education and Workplace Relations, Canberra, 2009, 160pp
BUT: English Language Requirements – Information Technology International education and migration trends:
Second main source of skill migrants in recent times
Half of international students applying through two-step migration (3,589) after 2 year degrees
IT = a third of skill migration visas issued in 2003-04 and 22% in 2004-05
Employability:
Vigorous competition for IS (eg regional universities such as CQU: Melbourne and Sydney campuses); multiple forms of ‘ESL’ accepted
Franchising, lack of underlying cognate degrees
‘Mountain of anecdotal evidence’: ‘IS are struggling to meet course requirements, in a context where universities cope by lowering the English standards in the courses they teach… accomplished by focusing requirements on problems which do not require essay writing skills, or by setting group assignments in which students with better English help out’ (Birrell 2006)
Australian Computer Society (2006): Calls for negative migration points for IT applicants ‘unable to corroborate’ their possession of adequate employment skills; case for IELTS 7.0
2005: Higher unemployment levels than the norm, below average labour market participation rates, wage impacts
English Language Demand by Field Engineering
Employability:
Past decade’s history: Abolition of ‘back-room jobs’
High-level English and communication: ‘Mandatory for professional employment’… ‘You do not get your foot in the door if you do not clearly speak English’
IELTS: Lifted by Engineers Australia to IELTS 6, including for engineering technicians
2006 economic migration review: Persistent NESB employment disadvantage even in WA (Eastern Europe, Central Asia, Middle East, South Asia)
English Requirements - the Trades? Year 1999 (June)
Professions IT, Accountancy, Physiotherapist, Registered Nurse, Sonographer
Trades and Vocational Occupations Boilermaker, Machinist, Pastry Cook, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Mechanic, Welder
2002 (October)
IT, Accountant, Hospital Pharmacist, Retail Pharmacist, Physiotherapist, Registered Nurse, Midwife, Mental Health Nurse, Sonographer, Radiation Therapist
Hairdresser, Cook, Refrigeration & Air Conditioning Mechanic
2007 (August)
Accountant, Anaesthetist, Architect, Chemical Engineer, Civil Engineer, Computing Professional - specialising in CISSP, C++/C#/C, Java, J2EE, Network Security/Firewall/Internet Security, Oracle, PeopleSoft, SAP, SIEBEL, Sybase SQL Server; Dental Specialist, Dentist, Dermatologist, Electrical Engineer, Emergency Medicine Specialist, External Auditor, General Medical Practitioner, Hospital Pharmacist, Mechanical Engineer, Medical Diagnostic Radiographer, Mining Engineer (excluding Petroleum), Obstetrician and Gynaecologist, Occupational Therapist, Ophthalmologist, Paediatrician, Pathologist, Petroleum Engineer, Physiotherapist, Podiatrist, Psychiatrist, Quantity Surveyor, Radiologist, Registered Mental Health Nurse, Registered Midwife, Registered Nurse, Retail Pharmacist, Specialist Medical Practitioners (not elsewhere classified), Specialist Physician, Speech Pathologist, Sonographer, Surgeon, Surveyor
Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (Avionics), Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (Mechanical), Automotive Electrician, Baker, Boat Builder and Repairer, Bricklayer, Cabinetmaker, Carpenter, Carpenter and Joiner, Chef, Cook, Drainer, Electrical Powerline Tradesperson, Electrician (Special Class), Electronic Equipment Tradesperson, Fibrous Plasterer, Fitter, Floor Finisher, Furniture Finisher, Furniture Upholsterer, Gasfitter, General Electrician, General Plumber, Hairdresser, Joiner, Lift Mechanic, Locksmith, Mechanical Services and Air-conditioning Plumber, Metal Fabricator (Boilermaker), Metal Machinist (First Class), Motor Mechanic, Optical Mechanic, Painter and Decorator, Panel Beater, Pastry Cook, Pressure Welder, Refrigeration and Airconditioning Mechanic, Roof Plumber, Roof Slater and Tiler, Solid Plasterer, Sheetmetal Worker (First Class, Stonemason, Toolmaker, Vehicle Body Maker, Vehicle Painter, Wall and Floor Tiler, Welder (First Class)
DEEWR Study 2009: What Australian Employers Want in the Knowledge Economy (Interview Data) Fields:
Accounting, IT, Engineering, Medicine, Nursing
Hospitality, hairdressing, building
Key issues:
‘The total package’ (backroom jobs vanishing)
The right technical skills
Impact of supply-demand on ‘tolerance’ (eg Deloitte and accounting: IELTS 8)
English ability (minimal access to concurrent support/ additional training)
‘Soft skills’ - cross-cultural adaptability, capacity to ‘fit in’
Recent Response to the Research Findings
English level matters enormously:
@ 6 months: Migrants who speak English very well (or native speakers) 3.6 times more likely to be employed than poor speakers
@ 18 months: Migrants who speak English very well (or native speakers) 4 times more likely to be employed than poor speakers
Policy changes:
2006+ - IELTS 7 or above mandatory all health professions/ extended to include temporary arrivals
September 2007 – IELTS 6 = threshold economic migration score/ major points for IELTS 7 or above
2007+ - Introduction of post-study ‘professional year’ (secure IELTS 7?)
2009 - Accountants only eligible for economic migration if IELTS 7 or completion of professional year (over-supplied field)
July 2011+ – –
No points for IELTS 6 (hurdle requirement) Major points for IELTS 8 (20) and 7 (10)
Remaining Issues 1. Uniformity of requirements – temporary skilled migrants:
21 days to approve a professional
457 visa ‘tightening up’ (baseline requirements)
2. Strategy:
For migrants transitioning to ‘two-step’ migration
3. Use to avoid over-supply by field?
Minister’s attempt in accounting (2010)
4. State economic migration plans – 2011+:
Reduce or inflate requirements?
5. Future competition:
Eg New Zealand’s skilled migration program
46% = English speaking background countries
88% selected on-shore with NZ job or job offer
