"Challenges faced by Timorese migrant workers returning home", 28 September 2024

Timorese migrant workers who return home after temporarily working in Australia face significant difficulties in finding suitable long-term employment and maintaining their wellbeing, a new report has found.

Since Timor-Leste began participating in Australia’s Seasonal Workers Programme in 2012, nearly 9,000 Timorese have come to Australia as temporary migrant labourers, with a current total of 3,750 workers presently employed in the country.

Led by Professor Udoy Saikia from the College of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences at Flinders University, the research investigated the experiences of over 700 migrant workers, with the resulting report offering a detailed analysis of the challenges encountered by Timorese workers after employment in Australia and South Korea.

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The report found less than half of all returnees were able to maintain a sense of wellbeing once home, while many struggled to reintegrate due to limited employment opportunities and underutilised skills acquired abroad.

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Professor Saikia says the report highlights the need for a coordinated, strategic approach to labour migration policies, focusing on reintegration, skill recognition, and economic development in Timor-Leste.

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