Immigration Data Debunks Claim About Yoga Teachers Outnumbering Construction Workers

Federal data has conclusively refuted claims by Liberal Senator Andrew Bragg that the Albanese government has brought more yoga teachers than construction workers into Australia, an assertion he made during recent criticisms of the government’s housing policies.

Department of Home Affairs records show that since July 2022, when Labor took office, Australia has welcomed thousands of construction workers through skilled migration programs, while the number of yoga instructors granted visas stands at a maximum of just four individuals.

Senator Bragg made the claim twice during an ABC Newcastle interview on October 15, arguing that housing supply shortages were partly due to insufficient numbers of construction workers being brought to Australia. “We’ve brought in more yoga teachers than construction workers under this government,” Bragg stated during the broadcast. He had previously made similar assertions in an October 1 interview.

When asked to substantiate his claim, Senator Bragg’s office attempted to reframe the comparison in terms of workforce percentage increases rather than absolute numbers. They argued that 69 yoga teachers had entered Australia in 2023/24, representing a 1.4 percent increase to what they estimated as a 5,000-person yoga teaching workforce, while the 11,349 construction workers represented only a 0.8 percent increase to the 1.33 million construction workforce.

However, official Department of Home Affairs data paints a drastically different picture. A department spokesperson clarified that yoga instructors became eligible for temporary skilled visas in late 2022 under an economic and trade agreement with India that was negotiated during the Morrison government. Importantly, only Indian nationals qualify for these visas under the “Other Sports Coaches and Instructors” occupation category.

The department’s records show that “less than five” Indian nationals were granted visas in this category – all in the 2023/24 period. For privacy reasons, the department doesn’t provide exact numbers when totals are this low. This means the maximum possible number of yoga instructors granted visas is four, and even these may include other sports coaches rather than exclusively yoga teachers.

In stark contrast, the construction sector has seen substantial immigration numbers. Official data shows 10,589 visas granted to construction workers in 2022/23, followed by 11,349 in 2023/24, and 15,524 in 2024/25. This totals 37,462 construction-related visas issued under the current government – nearly 10,000 times more than the maximum possible number of yoga teacher visas.

Even when focusing specifically on occupations most directly involved in residential construction, the numbers remain overwhelming. Department records show 12,223 skilled visas were granted to construction trades workers between 2022/23 and 2024/25, with an additional 2,508 visas issued to construction managers during the same period.

The Sydney Morning Herald had previously reported that 69 yoga teachers and other sports instructors migrated to Australia in 2023/24, but this figure appears to represent a broader category that includes diving instructors and sports umpires, rather than yoga teachers specifically.

This verification of immigration numbers comes amid ongoing political debates about housing affordability and supply in Australia, with opposition figures frequently questioning the government’s approach to addressing construction workforce shortages through skilled migration channels.