88% of Australian Firms Struggle to Find Local Talent: Remote

88% of Australian businesses say finding qualified local talent got harder over the past year, according to new research from Remote, the global employment platform. That figure sits ten points above the global average of 78%. Nearly eight in ten Australian firms — 79% — report missing a key business goal because they could not find the people they needed.

The numbers point to a mismatch, not a worker shortage. Businesses need capabilities that aren't available in the right locations and timeframes. The parliamentary inquiry into skilled migration (an ongoing federal review of Australia's migration settings) has heard the country struggles to attract AI, cybersecurity and energy talent. Science and Technology Australia has also warned the domestic STEM pipeline (science, technology, engineering and maths graduates) is under strain as demand grows across AI, AUKUS, cyber, quantum and net zero.

Takeaway: Australia's problem isn't headcount — it's that specific skills sit in the wrong places.

Where is the hiring going?

Remote's data shows firms are already looking abroad. Between July 2025 and July 2026, demand for senior software engineers hired internationally rose 141%. Game developer demand grew 100%. Software engineers rose 86% and QA specialists 42%.

Source countries shifted too. Hires from the Philippines by Australian companies jumped 108%, with India up 89% and the US up 55%. For an individual software engineer in Manila or Bangalore, that means Australian employers are now active, credible buyers of their skills.

There's a distinction worth drawing. Hiring globally to access scarce expertise differs from moving existing Australian jobs offshore to cut costs. Remote's position is that global hiring should widen the pool for hard-to-fill roles, not replace investment in local workers.

Takeaway: Cross-border hiring is a skills play, not an offshoring play.

Does hiring across borders create complexity?

Finding the right person is half the challenge. Each new country brings its own employment laws, tax rules, payroll requirements, benefits structures and currency considerations. Remote argues businesses need compliant multi-country employment infrastructure rather than treating every international hire as a one-off.

Leaders still face strategic calls: which capabilities justify an international search, which markets fit best, and how those hires serve the broader workforce plan. As the report puts it, the objective is not to make every role global — it is to ensure geography doesn't block access to a critical skill that exists elsewhere.

Takeaway: Technology removes operational barriers, not the need for a workforce strategy.

What about Australia's own pipeline?

Overseas hiring addresses today's gap, not tomorrow's. The report argues education, vocational training and professional development must align more closely with future business needs, with clearer entry pathways for career starters and reskilling routes for experienced workers.

Employers carry part of that load. Companies need to develop junior talent, invest in existing staff and build pathways into specialist roles that are getting harder to fill — including asking whether an external hire is needed at all, or whether training and internal mobility could close the gap.

Takeaway: International hiring buys expertise today; local investment builds the pipeline.

What does a softening market mean for specialists?

A softer labour market doesn't erase specialist shortages. Headline employment figures can't tell a business whether available candidates hold the capabilities it needs. The report's core argument: workforce planning should start with the capability required, not a predetermined location, and the strongest strategies will use every pathway — local development, migration and global search — while continuing to invest in Australia's talent pipeline.

By Tom Whitfield