[FiniteField]

The rub here is "skilled workers". Just after Brexit, the Boris Johnson Tory government adjusted immigration rules for "skilled" workers, and caused a civilisation-altering number of people (now known as the "Boriswave") to immigrate to the country, mostly from India, Africa, and other less developed areas. It's now known that almost every pay level and skill (or lack thereof) of job was eligible under the new rules, with some countries of origin, like Zimbabwe, having up to 10 dependents per worker on average IIRC. The same story has played out in the US with the "skilled" H1B visa scheme. People have lost all trust in governments to architect immigration laws in the interest of the natives, rather than giving big business carte blanche to import their own replacement workforce who will do any available job for the national minimum wage.

[bombcar]

"Skilled" sounds nice because it sounds like "doctors, educated" but the only real SAFE way to ensure it's actually skilled is make the dollar amounts so high that no company will want to use it to import cheap near-slave labor.

[robocat]

The other thing I've noticed about many immigrants is that they are highly motivated and effective. Gritty doers.

The immigration process filters for particular traits, not just what's on a resume.

[dadadanda]

>The immigration process filters for particular traits, not just what's on a resume

55% of the 1 million Syrians living in Germany are dependent on welfare.

The act of immigrating on its own does not select for anything other than a willingness to relocate.

[robocat]

New Zealand has much stricter filters for immigrants.

Tautologically: good immigrants are great and bad immigrants are terrible. I certainly know a few awful immigrants too.

30% of our population was born overseas. It seems to be working fine for those born here and for the immigrants.

Young New Zealanders emigrate, and existing immigrants get older so NZ has an ongoing need to have more immigrants.

People want to come here so we have the luxury of setting filters. I'm not sure what will happen when other countries start competing harder for the "better" immigrants.

Australia is similar but it has less trouble with losing its young people - it gains a lot of New Zealanders because it is a wealthier country with better weather (but bitier fauna)

[robocat]

> like Zimbabwe, having up to 10 dependents per worker on average IIRC

Some developed countries have terrible demographics and need fresh kids.

I am expecting that sometime soon New Zealand will start accepting unskilled immigrants if they have >2 healthy kids under 10 years old. It wouldn't surprise me if the dept of internal affairs already has a soft rule to encourage that.

At some point many countries with shitty demographics are going to have to start competing to import kids.

[dadadanda]

In the 19th century China enjoyed such an abundance of labour that they felt little need for an industrial revolution. By shovelling labour into developed countries you are depriving them of the impetus to innovate. It will have terrible long term effects.