Dairy farmers battle to find skilled workers

WEST Gippsland dairy farmers are facing a shortage of skilled workers to milk cows.
Caldermeade farmer Will Jelbart says one of the main reasons is lower wages.
“There are a lot of things you’ve got to be able to do, but there is not good money.”
Mr Jelbart pays aboveaward wages to try to get and keep workers.
He said a building contractor would pass labour costs onto the client but dairy farmers cannot pass labour costs onto the milk company.
Mr Jelbart says dairy farm workers need to be multiskilled with knowledge of mechanics and animal husbandry.
Awkward hours are another problem. Work on his farm begins at 4am and does not finish till about 6:30pm. “We have got some good staff here but it has been difficult,” he said.
West Gippsland stock agent Roger Dickinson agrees there is a labour shortage.
He says it’s difficult to find workers willing to work and with the necessary skills.
Workers may also lack the means to travel to farms and public transport is virtually nonexistent in the country.
Peter Sherman, the chair of a local dairy employment management committee, says the biggest problem is a lack of skills in applicants.
He said if he advertised for workers for his dairy farm he would probably get 40 responses, but only one or two would be worth considering and perhaps neither of them would be suitable.
Nola Anderson, project officer at the National Centre for Dairy Education – Australia, said low unemployment rates are part of the difficulty.
Farmers need to be known as an employer of choice, practise good employer relations, allow time off and value skills, she said.
She said there is also a perception problem with farming. Modern farms use expensive machinery, computerisation and procedures to ensure high quality milk.
“It’s not just gumboots and mud anymore,” Ms Anderson says.
Pakenham resident Matthew Trotter, 19, has gone against the trend and is currently undertaking an Advanced Diploma in Agriculture – Dairy at Warragul.
“Hopefully one day I’ll own and manage my own dairy farm,” he said.
“Work is pretty easy to find. People are chasing you all the time.”
He said meeting new people, working with animals and job satisfaction are appealing parts of dairy farming.