Sydney's Most Wanted: Drought Hits The Professions
Sydney Morning Herald
Saturday March 9, 2002
Unlikely as it might seem in litigious Sydney, there is a pressing shortage of lawyers not criminal or business lawyers, but those specialising in personal injury. The city appears to have its quota of accountants, however, although there is a shortage in rural NSW.
Nurses are in short supply everywhere, along with high school teachers of mathematics, science and information technology. Supplies of speech pathologists, breast x-ray technicians, civil and electrical engineers and pharmacists have also dried up.
This grim snapshot of professional shortfalls illustrates the plight of employers who are wrestling to fill thousands of jobs.
The latest survey of professional skill shortages by the Federal Department of Employment and Workplace Relations also shows a critical shortage in NSW of physiotherapists in the area of HIV/AIDS and geriatric palliative care.
There is a nationwide shortage of child-care workers, midwives, mental health nurses, occupational therapists and radiation therapists, the survey list for February this year found.
Civil engineers, especially in the area of design, general project management, water supply, drainage and sewerage, are also in short supply across NSW.
The employment shortage statistics are reflected in targets set by the Department of Immigration in its ``migration occupations in demand" list posted at Australian embassies.
That list which also covers trades people includes chefs, refrigeration and air-conditioning mechanics, cabinetmakers, hairdressers and upholsterers.
Jane Staley, executive officer of the Australian Plaintiff Lawyers Association, said yesterday that some members had reported difficulty recruiting personal injury lawyers. ``Those who take it up receive great rewards in terms of helping the injured get fair compensation, but it can also be emotionally difficult work."
The executive director of the Australian Physiotherapy Association's NSW branch, Mark Brown, said people phoned daily trying to recruit staff in both the public and private sectors. ``Not many drop out of university but a number drop out of the profession after a couple of years," he said. ``The career path in hospitals is really poor. Graduates tend to take their first job in the public health system.
``They get $37,437 a year and that goes up to $50,629 with six or more years of experience. Then they're stuck unless they go into management. Hospitals are relying on people with working visas to plug the holes."
The chief executive of the Institution of Engineers, John Boshier, said new market demands had forced the profession and the universities to reassess the way in which courses were taught.
``Knowledge in engineering and science generally is doubling every five years," he said. ``In IT and biotechnology, it's doubling every two years, so it's increasingly difficult to match skills to the market."
Maxine Goodman, NSW branch director of the Pharmaceutical Society of Australia, said there were about 8000 pharmacists on the register but many were working in marketing, advertising and other medical areas. Sydney and Charles Sturt universities produced about 200 graduates a year but last year, when the course increased to four years, there were none.
LAWYER
Karen Stott, 30, associate at the Sydney law firm McLaughlin and Riordan. A personal injury specialist, she had not planned to work in the field but now enjoys it "with a passion ... I'm able to help people suffering serious injuries at the fault of another person to make the best of their life. It's a job that really means something at the end of the day."
ENGINEER
Ray Brown, 53, a civil engineer responsible for operations and maintenance at Actew AGL's sewerage and water treatment plants in the ACT. "I wanted to be an architect but this was the next best thing," he says.
"It's a good mix of engineering and management and I'm dealing with people."
PHYSIOTHERAPIST
Juliana Gallagher, 24, physiotherapist at Royal North Shore Hospital. Will head overseas to work in July. When she returns, it will be to private practice and possibly academia. What she loves about the job: "If someone comes in and they're having trouble doing the littlest things and they walk out, it's just a fantastic feeling."
NURSE
Seona Emanuelli, 26, nurse at Royal North Shore Hospital's neo-natal intensive care unit. Recently returned to work after taking two years off to take care of her son.
"You're making decisions that actually save lives and that's a real adrenalin rush.
© 2002 Sydney Morning Herald