PeopleIn Limited,  formerly People Infrastructure, announced that it has entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares in FIP (Food Industry People) Group Holdings Pty Ltd.

FIP is a workforce solutions business that is one of the largest providers of staff to the food sector in Australia. It employs a significant number of these workers under the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme.

The PALM Scheme helps fill labour gaps in rural and regional Australia by offering approved employers access to a pool of reliable, productive workers where there are not enough local workers available. The scheme allows Pacific and Timorese workers to take up jobs in Australia, develop their skills and send income home to support their families and communities.

FIP was established in 2006 and has grown to be a national leader in workforce solutions under the PALM Scheme. FIP workers are employed on a fixed term basis for the duration of their visas (typically 3-4 years) and are assigned directly to a host employer for the duration of their stay.

As part of its responsibilities as an employer, FIP provides a dedicated pastoral care program which includes providing workers with access to accommodation, transport, healthcare and connecting workers with local community services, churches and sporting clubs.

PeopleIn highlighted that at the beginning of FY22 the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade announced that there were 55,000 work-ready Pacific and Timorese people available to commence work in Australia, demonstrating the obtainable expansion opportunities through the FIP acquisition.

“The newly elected Labor Government has outlined several policies to increase the uptake and expansion of the PALM Scheme, indicating continued support for the Scheme. Policies include covering workers’ international and domestic travel costs upfront and adding agriculture as a third visa stream,” PeopleIn stated.

PeopleIn stated that the acquisition of FIP increases its participation in the food sector

The consideration payable for FIP is on a cash free, debt free basis. The Food Industry People Group is expected to contribute approximately AUD 9.5 million (USD 6.8 million) in EBITDA in FY23 and generate pro forma forecast earnings per share accretion of +15% in FY23. The cash component of the acquisition will be debt funded from PeopleIn’s existing lender and the net debt post acquisition will be approximately 1.1x net debt to pro forma FY22 EBITDA.

Food Industry People Group CEO Brad Seagrott will join the PeopleIN executive leadership team and continue in his current role as CEO of Food Industry People Group. Together PeopleIN and FIP will work to accelerate growth through sharing customers and grow geographically. The transaction is subject to conditions and is expected to complete by mid-June.

PeopleIn’s Chief Executive Officer, Ross Thompson said “PeopleIn has acquired an at scale international recruitment engine room to be leveraged by our defensive growth sectors, including food services, healthcare and aged care. Our investment via the PALM Scheme will help solve the significant employee shortages faced by our clients, and the broader market, by bringing in workforces at scale.”

Earlier this year PeopleIn Limited announced that it entered into an agreement to acquire 100% of the shares in accounting recruitment firm Perigon Group.

PeopleIn reported revenue for the six months ended 31 December 2021, an increase of 57.1% over the previous year.