Desperate employers and universities have proposed new coronavirus quarantine schemes as they 'beg' the federal government to let more foreign workers and students into the country. A chronic shortage of farm workers - due to coronavirus border controls keeping out backpackers - has cost farmers millions of dollars as fruit and veg goes to waste without being picked. Hospitality businesses such as pubs and restaurants are also struggling to hire as Australia's unemployment rate dips to 5.6 per cent and is expected to fall even further as the economy recovers from last year's lockdowns. Meanwhile, the university sector remains crippled as international students - which provide up to 40 per cent of a university's revenue - are prevented from entering the country.