REGIONAL South Australia will see seasonal work more easily accessible following a change to planning laws to fast-track temporary workers’ accommodation.

The seasonal change to planning regulations will streamline the development application process, ensuring short-term accommodation can be set up quickly.

The change follows calls from companies like bulk grain handler Viterra for greater accommodation, with regional hotels and motels booked out in the lead up to harvest seasons.

The planning regulation changes will:

• Remove the requirement for bulk handlers and other farmers to obtain planning consent for temporary accommodation proposals in specified areas.
• Change the approval process, so development applications are assessed by the State Planning Commission, rather than councils, to ensure development approvals granted is appropriately and consistently conditioned.

“These changes are expected to significantly reduce the time it takes to gain approval to build temporary accommodation for the seasonal workers they need – making it easier for those who want to access these jobs, and farmers who need the workers,” said Minister for Planning, Nick Champion.

Companies will still need to obtain building rules consent to ensure any accommodation for seasonal workers is built appropriately and safely.

Minister for Primary Industries Clare Scriven said the SA Labor government was committed to supporting regions.

“This change will provide essential support to our farmers and grain handlers by ensuring that harvest workers can be accommodated nearby,” Ms Scriven said.

“This is crunch time for many of our growers and recent times has made it difficult to obtain access to seasonal workers. This year we want to ensure there are no barriers getting in the way of attracting these workers to our regions.”

Viterra chief operations officer James Murray said the temporary accommodation approval would “greatly assist the hiring of harvest workers in more remote locations where permanent accommodation is difficult to find”.

“We thank the South Australian government for its support of this initiative,” he said,  “and the acknowledgement of the importance of this year’s grain harvest to regional communities and the economy more broadly.”