As a Palestinian refugee in Lebanon, Maya Assad struggled to get a job.
Despite being a qualified engineer, her status as a stateless person meant she was treated like a second-class citizen with virtually no rights.
“One time I was applying for a job and I was successful and everything,” she told SBS News.
“At the last stage, they were just having general information from me, and when they know that I’m not Lebanese, they just cancelled everything.
“It was really hard.”
Ms Assad’s luck changed last year when she was offered a civil engineering job in the Western Australian town of Esperance through the Skilled Refugee Labour Agreement Pilot.
“I was so surprised – is that real, like, is there anybody who would help refugees, because that’s what’s so weird for us,” she said.
Maya Assad moved to Australia with her husband and son earlier this year. Source: Supplied
The program – which was launched last July by the previous government – gives Australian employers the opportunity to recruit skilled refugees to fill critical worker shortages.
“This innovative pilot matches refugees whose skills are not being used in countries of asylum with Australian employers who need those skills,” Refugee Council of Australia chief executive officer Paul Power said.
The Refugee Council wants the federal government to extend the pilot and increase the number of spots to 500 in 2022-23, to help fill Australia’s skills shortages.
“As Talent Beyond Boundaries, which coordinates the pilot, has more than 40,000 refugees listed on its global skills register, there is plenty of scope to expand this pilot well beyond the 200 places currently available,” Mr Power said.
Another opportunity for Australia to address skill shortages could be to “maximise the potential” of the 107,000 asylum seekers on bridging visas, Mr Power said.
“People in this situation have struggled throughout the COVID pandemic without access to a national financial safety net and many of those with work rights are filling vital jobs across Australia,” he said.
“Not only is there a pressing need to speed up the processing and review of onshore protection visa applications but there is also the opportunity to provide an alternative visa pathway for people who are refused protection but are making an important economic contribution.”
As a Palestinian refugee, Maya Assad struggled to find work in Lebanon. Source: Supplied
Ms Assad said moving to Australia with her husband and son has turned engineering from something she liked into her “passion”.
“If we have the skills, if we have the certificate, if we have everything – we should be able to get this opportunity,” she said.
The federal government announced on Friday that a comprehensive review would be conducted into Australia’s migration system.
Ms Assad said giving more skilled refugees a chance to make a life in Australia would be a win-win.
“The employer will have a good employee, and at the same time, all these people like me – refugees – they are not having any rights, they are just waiting for [an] opportunity to prove themselves,” she said.
“These people will help Australia as Australia will have done in the same way. They will love Australia as if it’s their country.”
