Dear Guest,

I'm very happy to bring you big news on proposed changes that could encourage you to visit Australia under the 457 skilled visa program.

According to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures released by the Immigration Department, 457 visa holders earned an average yearly salary of about $71,600, more than $15,000 above the average Australian salary.

In some industries, overseas workers earned salaries $25,000 a year more than the industry average. In the mining sector, 457 visa holders earned an average of $95,200 in 2006-07, compared with an average of $89,550 across the sector.

So now, to ease the skills crisis, the Federal Government is looking for ways to help big companies and state governments fast-track thousands of qualified foreign workers into jobs in mines and hospitals. But businesses say processing time for skilled workers is too long. "... they want to make decisions much quicker ... and they want to respond to demand much quicker," Senator Evans said.

The report is due to be tabled, and LIA will keep you informed of all new 457 provisions.

You might also be interested to know Australia's population is growing faster than at any time in almost 20 years. What's more, skilled workers like you, have helped lift net migration to a record 179,122 people in the year to September 2007.

If you wish to join these well paid, highly skilled immigrants, contact LIA now. We will help you, just as we have helped more than 80,000 skilled workers and their families so far.

Simply click on the links below to automatically scroll down the page of the latest LIVE IN australia.com^® news. Click on 'TOP' to return to the top of the page:

1. Queensland: Growth, lifestyle, careers
2. How far can a migrant go? - Vitorrio de Bortoli: Father of a winemaking dynasty
3. Australia seeks skilled workers by the thousand
4. Why do so many skilled migrants 'go bush'?
5. Aussie Surprise of the Month - The GESTAPO's biggest enemy was an Aussie woman!
6. Occupations and country of origin - 457 profile
7. A Town Like Charters Towers
8. Aussie Survival Guide - Australian Rules Football
9. One nation, many cultures - National Folk Festival, 20-24 March 2008
10. Oh say can you see…the opportunity?!
11. So how do you like Australia? - Juma Abuyi - kicking goals from Sudan to Launceston.
12. Aussie Recipe: Spag Bol
13. In Brief

Queensland: Growth, lifestyle, careers
The Queensland economy has experienced strong growth over the last decade, creating an ever-increasing demand for skilled people.

Thus, the Queensland Government encourages highly skilled migrants with skills in demand to consider migration to Queensland and share in the state's exciting future.

Queensland offers a high standard of living and good working conditions. Among other rights, Queensland workers enjoy a discrimination free workplace, safe working conditions, good wages and public and annual holiday leave entitlements.

The Skilled Migration Program is a key platform for the attraction of skills in critical shortage in Queensland. The program is administered by Migration and Skills Recruitment Queensland who provides the following services:

• promotes the benefits of skilled migration to regional areas
• works with local governments, community organisations and employers interested in skilled migration
• uses the skill matching database to ensure that details are available to employers in regional or low population growth areas who are looking to fill skilled vacancies
• identifies post arrival services available to successful migrants.

The Queensland Government participates in the Skilled Regional Sponsored provisional visa and also the Skilled Sponsored permanent residency visa. Nominations are provided by the Queensland Government to those skilled migrants who have an eligible skill and who can contribute to the development of the State.

There are numerous migrant work visas offered by the Australian Government, each one having its own set of criteria.

Let a LIA Migration Advisor secure your future in Queensland today.

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How far can a migrant go?
Vitorrio De Bortoli: Father of a winemaking dynasty

Vittorio De Bortoli came to Australia in 1924 from Castelcucco, in the Veneto region of northern Italy, to escape the devastation of the Great War. He went to Griffith in rural New South Wales searching for a life on the land. His childhood sweetheart, Guiseppina, who devised a way of making dry table wine for the family and other migrant Italians, soon followed him. At the same time, she introduced many Australians to the Italian lifestyle.

The De Bortoli farm soon became the centre of a thriving immigrant community. By 1928 Vittorio and Giuseppina had established vineyards at Bilbul, in New South Wales. Soon after, they established a winery that was later expanded by their son Deen. Today the company is in the capable hands of a third generation and is one of the leading winemaking families in Australia today.

In fact, De Bortoli Wines is one of Australia's largest private companies, with vineyards throughout Victoria and New South Wales, producing a wide range of premium wines including red and white varietal wines, sparkling wines and fortified wines. The Bilbul winery produces the acclaimed Noble One, world-class fortified wines and premium varietal and sparkling wines. The Yarra Valley is renowned for the classic varieties Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Shiraz, Sauvignon, Riesling and Viognier, while the Hunter Valley is famous for its distinctive Semillon and Shiraz styles with character, personality and the ability to age gracefully. The King Valley is rapidly developing a reputation for its Mediterranean varietal wines including Sangiovese, Tempranillo and Pinot Grigio.
The De Bortoli family motto translates as "Always Striving For Better".

Today, Australia is a world leader in both high quality and delectable 'quaffing' wines. Vitorrio De Bortoli's dynasty has been a major contributor in these achievements.

Vittorio & Giuseppina De Bortoli

LIA shares that determination to always strive to be better. Contact an LIA Advisor now and see what that means for you.

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Australia seeks skilled workers by the thousand
Australia's Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, recently released a new list of sought-after skills to help skilled migrants understand Australia's needs when applying for jobs in the country.

Mr. Rudd said, "The Government recognises a role for skilled migration in addressing skills shortages, having recently expanded the skilled migration program."

Immigration and Visas to Australia
Australian companies do sponsor foreign workers to Australia. The 457 visa which is also known as the Temporary Business (Long Stay), is a temporary visa which cannot be used between jobs. If a company sponsors you, you may only work for that company. Candidates do have the option to apply towards obtaining permanent residency that offers great benefits and flexibility to its holders.

Finding A Job In Australia
There is a high demand for skilled workers in Australia but the employment market is still very competitive. Many small and medium businesses prefer to hire an agency to find the employees that they need and arrange for their migration to Australia. However many businesses advertise in newspapers or online.

Skills in Demand
Mining & Construction
Health/community services
Mechanical
Service industries

Salary Survey – Australian
Salaries are calculated before taxes, excluding bonuses, incentives and compensation and they are quoted as per the Australian Dollar and are subject to change accordingly.
Construction Workers - $30,100 - 49, 700
Child care Worker - $23,800 - 39,900
Computer Programmer - $78,100 - 112,000
Electrician Certified - $52,200 - 82,100
Human Resource Manager - $85,100 - 127,270

The skills shortage has affected the construction, health and mining sectors to name but a few.

Thousands of skilled migrants make Australia their home every year. An LIA Advisor can explain the opportunities that await you.

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Why do so many skilled migrants 'go bush'?
'Going bush' is a traditional Aussie term for escaping the hurly burly of the big city. In 1889 an Australian poet called Banjo Patterson wrote Clancy of the Overflow, which addresses what many city people feel about 'the bush'.

And he sees the vision splendid of the sunlit plains extended,
And at night the wond'rous glory of the everlasting stars.

Recently, the terms 'sea change' and 'tree-change' were coined to describe re-location to a coastal or inland country town.

So, what's the attraction of 'the bush'?

The lifestyle. Today, even small towns offer fine dining and good coffee. Many are in or near world-famous wine regions. Most are within easy reach of big towns with sophisticated shopping centres, professional offices and University campuses. And, of course, regional towns and cities don't have treacle-speed peak hour traffic and don't need crowded commuter trains.

Many professional jobs. Country cities and towns need accountants, architects, medical professionals, academics, administrators and entrepreneurs just like the big cities. The work is interesting and well paid and you can go home for lunch if you want to.

The resources boom. Australia's dramatic boom is accelerating the need for more and more professionals in areas distant from the capital cities. New towns are springing up, and long-established ones are growing quickly, attracting many skilled migrants into those regions.

Housing costs. If you're selling a home in London, Manchester, Paris or New York you can buy a bigger and better one in Australia's provinces and have a 'huge' nest-egg to invest.

The Internet. If you're a consultant, a writer, a statistician or an online marketer, it doesn't matter where your computer is. By a beach, on a mountain, in the middle of a vast plain, such professionals are the centres of their own universes.

Australia has many small to medium sized cities with most of the advantages of State capitals, but with a much more laid-back lifestyle. Do they attract skilled migrants? Just read the phone books.

Thinking of looking at some of Australia's many regional cities and towns? Contact an LIA Advisor and discuss the opportunities.

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Aussie Surprise of the Month
The GESTAPO's biggest enemy was an Aussie woman!

Nancy Wake AC GM was the Allies' most decorated servicewoman of World War 2. She fought alongside the French Resistance. Her family moved to Australia from New Zealand in 1914, when she was only two years of age. While working in Europe in 1935, she witnessed the rise of Adolph Hitler, and saw his Storm Troopers' violence on the streets of Vienna.

In 1939, she married Frenchman Henri Fiocca, and was living in Marseille, when Hitler's armies invaded. When France fell, she became a courier for the French Resistance. The Gestapo code-named her the White Mouse and by 1943, she was the Gestapo's most-wanted person, with a 5 million-franc price on her head. When she was betrayed, she had to leave her husband and flee to Britain where she joined the Special Operations Executive.

In April 1944, Nancy Wake parachuted into the Auvergne and became a liaison between London and the local maquis group headed by Captain Henri Tardivat. She coordinated resistance activity prior to D-Day and also led attacks on German installations and a local Gestapo HQ in Montluçon.

From April 1944 until the complete liberation of France, her 7000 maquisards fought 22,000 SS soldiers inflicting around 1400 casualties. On one occasion, in order to replace codes her wireless operator had been forced to destroy in a German raid, Nancy rode a bicycle for more than 100 miles through German occupied France. After the war, she received the British George Medal, the U.S. Medal of Freedom, the French Croix de Guerre three times, as well as Médaille de la Resistance. She also learned that the Gestapo had tortured her husband to death in 1943, for refusing to disclose her whereabouts.

Next time you see a documentary on the heroic White Mouse, remember she was an old girl of North Sydney Girls High School.

Nancy Wake

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Occupations and country of origin - 457 profile
According to Immigration Department stats, professionals led the list of top 15 occupations for primary 457 visa grants in 2006-07.

While Britain contributed the most workers in the past six months (6130), followed by India (3670), The Philippines (1870), China (1850) and the US (1570), Australia is increasingly turning to developing countries in its search for skilled workers.

In 2006-07, 46,680 temporary 457 visas, were issued to foreign skilled workers. Health and community services accounted for 16 per cent of all 457 visas issued, communication services 10 per cent, property and business services 10 per cent, manufacturing 9 per cent and construction 9 per cent. Professionals, making up seven of the top 10 457 visa skills categories.

British workers were most likely to work as doctors and nurses, or in the property and business service sector. Indian workers were concentrated in communications and health, while Americans were mostly in communications. Of the 46,680 visas issued in the 12 months to June 30 last year, 25,750 were issued in the six months to the end of December - a 10 per cent increase on current trends.

The resource-rich states of Western Australia and Queensland still drive Australia's so-called "two-speed" economy, yet the slower growth states of NSW and Victoria took the greatest numbers of 457 visa holders.

Bob Birrell, director of the Centre for Population and Urban Research at Monash University, said the most striking trend was the high take-up rate among citizens from the developing world. "In the six months since the end of the financial year, China has overtaken the US. That's a pretty good indication of where the program is going," he said.

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A Town Like Charters Towers
If you're feeling closed in and shut down in a huge, dark, drizzly European city, maybe it's time you 'went bush' somewhere like Charters Towers. This is a city of around 10,000 people in northern Queensland, located 135 kilometres south-west of Townsville (143,328 people) on the Flinders Highway. It borders the tropical north's best attractions and the countryside is rugged, mountainous rainforest areas in the north east and basalt strewn grasslands, to sandy desert plains in the south west.

On the Burdekin River, Charters Towers is a centre for the beef industry and is particularly known for the number of boarding schools that cater for remote rural families. It obtains its water supply from the Burdekin, which is economically the most important river in Australia, with the fourth-largest watershed of any exorheic drainage system in Australia.

The town was founded in the 1870s when gold was found in the area, and rapidly grew to become a regional centre. Today there remains more gold underground than the total removed in the gold rush of the late 1800s when around 212 tonnes of gold was extracted from 6 million tons of ore. Many of the older buildings of the mining boom remain, giving a distinct character to a town that appears out of place in a dry region.

Charters Towers currently has four high schools in the area. These four are: Columba Catholic College, Blackheath and Thornborough College, All Souls Saint Gabriel's School and Charters Towers State High School. The city is completely surrounded by the rural shire of Dalrymple Shire which has its offices and works depots within Charters Towers.

Gill Street, Charters Towers

If you're interested in the possibilities of an Aussie 'sea change' or 'tree change', contact LIA without delay.

Charters Towers regional Council
James Cook University, Townsville
Townsville infrastructure

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Aussie Survival Guide
Australian Rules Football
Probably best to make a cup of tea and relax, while you try to get your head around Aussie rules (footy).

The game started as an exercise to keep cricketers fit during the winter months. Today, elite footballers are highly trained athletes, with finely tuned frames and extraordinary endurance. Cricketers tend not to be fitness fanatics, so that plan didn't work.

A somewhat anarchic ethos envelopes Aussie Rules, although there are rules – quite a few – and some people actually understand them.

The game is played with an oval shaped ball with pointy ends, on large grassy ovals. There are four posts at each end. The inner pair of posts forms the goal. You get 6 points if you kick the ball through without anybody touching it. But don't worry, if someone does touch it, or you miss and it goes between the big and little posts you get a point anyway because, well, you had a go.

The winner is the team who has the higher total of points at the end of the game. No surprise there.

As a contact sport, opposing players are free to tackle you, or bump you quite hard. It's not practicable to discuss the do's and don'ts of tackling and bumping here, as the umpires kind of decide that on the day.

Players who hold onto the ball too long when tackled are penalised but again, 'too long' is more of a philosophical concept than a hard and fast elapsed time.

There's a lot more to the rules, which you can find out here.

The game was codified in Melbourne in 1858, making it the oldest organised football in the world.

Aussie Rules is now played in many countries; at a somewhat 'early learning' level. In August an International Cup tournament will be contested by teams from as far away as South Africa, the UK, the USA, Canada, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Japan and various Pacific nations.

Like to select your own team to support? Visit the official website today.

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One nation, many cultures
National Folk Festival, 20-24 March 2008

Easter, when Canberra is at its golden autumn best. Australia's festival flagship, the 'National', draws together people from all around Australia and the world. They come to share in the songs, dances, tunes, and verse that have flowed through the ages from many communities into Australian folk culture.

Held in Canberra but truly "The National Folk Festival", it focuses the whole nation in a celebration of Rock 'n' Roll, Blue Grass, Jazz, Country and Western, Celtic and many diverse national styles plus the many traditional folk styles.

The festival is also noted for its annual dance program from all around the world - Africa, Spain, China, Ireland, Egypt, Scotland, Argentina, Papua New Guinea, Chile, Lebanon, the Balkans and beyond – colonial and Scottish balls, bush dancing, square dancing, clog dancing – dance workshops and dance displays.

For five days Exhibition Park in Canberra dresses up and becomes a magic place, filled with colour and sound. Hundreds of the world's best musicians perform daily, in a non-stop flow of entertainment across twenty-two fabulous venues. Every day is packed with workshops and sessions, where you can join in the dancing, singing and playing and become part of the celebration. It's all there for you; once you've bought your ticket and come through the magic time portal you won't need to leave.

Visit the site for more details.

National Folk Festival, Canberra

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Oh say can you see...the opportunity?!
As the Australian economy enters its 17th year of economic expansion, PM Kevin Rudd recently spoke of the pressing skills shortages inhibiting Australia's construction industry.

Got construction skills and want join a great Australian team? Contact LIA and see how your skills dovetail with Australia's needs!

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So how do you like Australia?
Juma Abuyi - kicking goals from Sudan to Launceston.

Juma uses his soccer skills to help others. As manager of the North Launceston Eagles Soccer Club, Juma uses training sessions to give pep talks on skills, both on and off the pitch.

'Soccer is one of the best ways for people to integrate into a new culture because we can bring these skills with us already,' Juma said.
'Soccer training has provided an informal setting for newly-arrived refugees to discuss concerns, such as driving without a license, car insurance, teamwork, and to meet new friends.'

Juma arrived in Tasmania five years ago with his mother and three brothers after decades in a refugee camp in northern Kenya. 'Our goal was to become independent as soon as possible,' 30-year-old Juma said.

Juma completed high school at Elizabeth College in Hobart before gaining an honours degree in Social Sciences from the University of Tasmania. He wrote an influential thesis, Out of Africa: Sudanese men's experience of living in Tasmania.
'When I was in Africa, and after my father died, I wondered if anything good could happen to me. I felt useless and out of control of my destiny.

'The concept of educational opportunities was simply a fairy story in my mind.' But his dream did come true.

Now Juma not only coaches soccer but also works full-time with the Migrant Resource Centre as a youth worker and bi-cultural family support worker in Launceston.

'I try and help other young people realise their dreams,' Juma said. 'From the time I arrived, I decided that it was good to take notice of the wise Australian community because they already know the best way of how to deal with local problems'.

If you'd like to re-charge your career and supercharge your life, contact LIA and see what Australia can offer you!

Juma Abuyi

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Aussie Recipe: Spag Bol
Many Australians would be amazed to learn their beloved 'spag bol' was once an Italian dish originating in Bologna … hence: Spaghetti Bolognese. Well, it's here to stay now, together with scores of other pastas made from Australian wheat and garnished with an endless cornucopia of Aussie meats, fish and vegetables.

Ingredients
1 tblspn oil
2 onions, chopped
500 g minced lean beef
500 g fresh tomatoes, roughly chopped
3 tblspn tomato paste
2 tblspn fresh basil, chopped
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup red wine
1 cup water
500 g spaghetti
Grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

Method
Heat oil in a large saucepan. Add onions. Sauté until onions are tender. Add mince steak. Stir over high heat until meat is browned. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, basil and pepper. Add wine and water. Mix well. Bring to boil, reduce heat. Simmer uncovered for approximately 45 minutes or until nearly all liquid has evaporated.

Cook spaghetti according to directions on the packet. Drain and keep warm. Pour sauce over spaghetti. Sprinkle with grated Parmesan cheese and serve with fresh crusty bread. Now, put on Pavarotti singing Nessun Dorma, loud ... pretend you're in Maribyrnong, Yarrandabby, Humpty Doo, Indooroopilly or anywhere else in Oz and twirl your fork in a sensational spag bol. Buono gusto!

Get your laughing gear (mouth), around some Spag Bol today!

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In Brief

Do you work with your hands and feet?

• In the 2006 Census, 75,155 persons were employed in sport and physical recreation occupations, an increase of 21.6% compared to the 2001 Census.
• Of those employed in a sport and physical recreation occupation, the largest numbers were reported for Fitness Instructors (13,800 persons), Greenkeepers (12,138 persons) and Swimming Coach or Instructor (7,588 persons).
• Of the 75,155 persons, there were more males (44,443 or 59.1%) than females (30,712 or 40.9%) employed in sport and physical recreation occupations.
• The 20-24 year age group had the largest number of persons employed in sport and physical recreation occupations (13,043 or 17.4%)

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Simpler Visa Rules for Slovaks
March 14 - Chris Evans, Australian Minister for Immigration and Citizenship has announced that as of March 20 of this year Slovakia will be included in the so-called auto-grant facility of Australia's electronic tourist-visa service (e676), informed Slovak Foreign Affairs Ministry spokesman Jan Skoda.

The move will enable Slovak citizens to receive short-term tourist visas to Australia much faster and with considerably less paperwork than has so far been the case. Representatives of the Australian ministry also spoke about a moderate delay in the introduction of a new visa system called e-visitors, which is designed to secure equal visa conditions for all EU-member countries. The introduction of the system, originally planned for July 1, will be postponed until October 2008 for technical reasons.

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London skilled worker Expo 'keeps the ball rolling'.
There was a Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) two-day Australia Needs Skills expo in London on March 15-16. The purpose of such expos is to inform skilled workers about Aussie opportunities and attract them to the idea of living and working in Australia.

Interested people met employers, recruitment companies, and representatives of various state and local government offices.

Australian Immigration Minister Chris Evans said "Australia is this year seeking more than 100,000 people in its skilled migration stream including accountants, engineers, health professionals and trades people," said. "There are skilled vacancies in all states and territories in more than ninety occupations."

More than 4000 prospective migrant workers pre-registered for the event.
Past expos in Amsterdam, Berlin, Chennai, Kolkata, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Manila have been very successful for businesses and government agencies looking for skilled workers from overseas, according to Evans.

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Aussie Word of the Month
Larry Dooley(noun): to give someone Larry Dooley, is to vigorously berate him or her. Can also be applied in sporting contexts; eg. a batsman giving a bowler Larry Dooley. (Based on the boxing style of one Larry Dooley, who threw punches from everywhere).

Aussie words in action: Ingrid gave Dwayne Larry Dooley when he spilt beetroot juice on her wedding dress.

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Best Regards,

Peter Seers
Marketing & Client Services Manager