00:00The sparks are flying, the acrid smoke of molten metal fills the air.
00:17And another wood heater frame rolls off the production line at Gaysons Manufacturing in
00:22Ararat.
00:23This 80 year old family enterprise is a major employer in this central highlands Victorian
00:29town of about 8,000 people.
00:31We've got over 100 staff on site and actually sales people as well.
00:36And through different parts they do welding, painting, assembly, office administration
00:42as well.
00:43So there's quite an array of work we actually have here on site.
00:47The firm designs and manufactures wood heaters and a wide range of farm machinery.
00:53For that you need skilled welders and metal workers and they're often in short supply.
00:58Behind the welding masks are men whose stories are both harrowing and inspiring.
01:05I was born in a refugee camp.
01:07My parents left Myanmar because everything was getting chaotic and there was mass murdering
01:14and stuff by the military.
01:16So my parents moved to a refugee camp and later they came to Australia around 2006, 2007.
01:25Ararat Rural City Council has been at the forefront of attracting and resentling migrants.
01:30Giving them a sense of purpose, a sense of living, a sense of family and we are supporting them too.
01:39We've got an opportunity here.
01:41We've got a lot of manufacturing firms as well as like Gaysons, the Abattoir for example.
01:47We are in need of people but the locals or some of our own citizens, they are not comfortable in doing these jobs.
01:56It gives our local employers confidence that they can invest and grow and without that sort
02:01of stability of the workforce they can't reinvest, they can't attract new investment or new contracts
02:07because they can't fill the contracts that are required.
02:10Without them we would be shorter hands to physically be able to make these amazing machines that you see behind us.
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