Research on mobile skilled workforce to benefit rural communities

Professional and highly skilled mobile workers are vital to the robustness of rural communities in Australia. The UDRH Tasmania, along with Southern Cross University School of Commerce and Management and Bowen Collinsville Enterprise Inc, is undertaking research to investigate how these mobile workers can deliver maximum benefits to rural communities.

The study targets specific communities, namely Campbell Town and Ross in Tasmania, Bowen in Queensland, and Kyogle in New South Wales.

The UDRH would like to talk to people in these communities who play a leadership role, such as school principals, local council economic development workers, health centre managers and members of local service organisations.

The participants will be invited to an interview where they will be asked to identify highly skilled mobile workers who have made a contribution to their community, and to describe how the contributions benefited the community. They will also be asked to help recruit highly skilled mobile workers to participate in the study.

The study aims to find out the extended benefits brought about by mobile workers beyond the practice of their skills. It will also identify community settings and policies that affect the sharing of their knowledge and skills, and their decision to extend their stay in the community.

The scope of the study is restricted to highly skilled mobile workers who have the legal right to work in Australia and have made a valuable contribution to their community economically, socially or environmentally. Mobile workers will include a range of people from different industries, such as seasonal workers, contractors and locums, as well as people who have recently arrived in the region, for example to run a business such as a restaurant or a bed and breakfast.

If you would like to participate in the research please contact one of the following:

Tasmania:
A/Prof Sue Kilpatrick, University Department of Rural Health, Launceston, phone (03) 6324 4000, email Sue.Kilpatrick@utas.edu.au

New South Wales:
Dr Peter Vitartas, Southern Cross University, Lismore, phone (02) 6620 3804, email peter.vitartas@scu.edu.au

Queensland:
Mr Martin Homisan, Bowen Collinsville Enterprise Inc., phone (07) 4761 3612, email manager@bce.org.au