Warrigal Queanbeyan welcomed several Fijian delegates visiting Australia. Among them was Mr Nemani, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry for Employment, Productivity and Workplace Relations.

The delegates met with Warrigal managers in Queanbeyan to discuss the ongoing working relationship between Fiji and Warrigal. Namely the PALM (Pacific Australia Labour Mobility) Scheme, that sees eligible Fijian citizens travel to Australia to work with us!

The PALM Scheme was developed to assist with recruitment and make a positive social impact. It is the Australian Government’s integrated approach to streamlining the Pacific Labour Scheme and Seasonal Worker Programme into one simplified system. This is in order to bring skilled, dedicated workers from the Pacific Islands to Australia. The program has been a great success, with the deployment of more than 130 Fijian employees across our services in New South Wales and the ACT.

Two current employees, who joined Warrigal as part of the PALM scheme, attended the meeting. They spoke about their experience moving to Australia to work with Warrigal. They both gave glowing reviews and spoke of how much they have enjoyed joining the Warrigal Way, as well as the connections they have built with our older people.

The meeting was very productive, with several key topics of focus discussed and a positive outlook for the future of the program. We look forward to future meetings and growing the program further to bring more skilled employees into our care homes!