The Albanese Government will target employers who exploit temporary visa holders in Australia through new measures released today, with key opinion leaders calling it a possible “game changer”.
According to the Albanese Government, one in six recent migrants to Australia is paid less than the minimum wage. It said this exploitation doesn’t just hurt the individual worker but can drive down wages and worsen conditions for all Australian workers.
The new measures will make it a criminal offence to coerce someone into breaching their visa conditions and introduce prohibition notices to stop employers from further hiring people on temporary visas when they were previously found to have exploited them.
It will also aim to increase penalties and new offer compliance tools to deter exploitation, as well as repeal section 235 of the Migration Act which actively undermines people reporting exploitative behaviour.
The Government will also provide $50 million in funding to resource the Australian Border Force for this and other enforcement and compliance activities.
The Government noted it will consult with businesses, unions and civil society on whistleblower protections for temporary visa holders.
“Exploiting workers is never acceptable,” Minister for Workplace Relations and Employment, Tony Burke said. “We’re committed to stamping it out wherever it’s happening and protecting all workers working in Australia – regardless of their migration status.”
Minister for Home Affairs Clare O’Neil said the migration system has waned over the last ten years into a reliance on low-paid temporary migrant workers.
“This indifference stops with our Government,” O’Neil said. “We are in consultation on systemic changes to our migration system which will ensure it works in the interests of Australian workers and businesses, and we are also doing the work necessary to ensure that no one who comes to this country is exploited or abused.”
The Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Andrew Giles, will introduce this legislation into Parliament in the coming weeks.
The Migrant Justice Institute – led by UNSW Sydney and UTS law professors – alongside the Human Rights Law Centre have welcomed the proposed changes.
They highlighted three key changes, including the protection against visa cancellation, flexible visa requirements for future sponsorship visas, and a short-term visa to bring claims for wages they are owed and hold exploitative employers to account.
Migrant Justice Institute and the Human Rights Law Centre also welcome two further protections for migrant workers, including regulations to enable sponsored migrants to leave a dodgy employer and work to support themselves for up to six months while they find a new sponsor as well as a commitment to changing the Migration Act to ensure all workers are protected by Australian workplace laws - regardless of immigration status.
“The visa protections announced today could be a game-changer for stopping the exploitation of migrant workers in Australia - if they are effectively designed,” Migrant Justice Institute co-executive director and UNSW associate professor Bassina Farbenblum said.
“For the first time, migrant workers could safely address wage theft and walk away from employers who exploit them without risking their visa. Dodgy employers will no longer be able to assume that international students and other migrants will suffer in silence if they’re underpaid or abused.”
Migrant Justice Institute co-executive director and UTS associate professor Laurie Berg said these changes must be implemented urgently.
“The cap on international students’ work hours returns on 1 July,” she said. “Employers know that if students work more hours than permitted, their visa could be cancelled if they report abuse.
“The combination of cost-of-living pressures to work more hours and lack of visa protections will create a perfect storm for widespread exploitation that may be the worst we’ve seen.”
Temporary visa holder and Migrant Workers Centre advocate Inderjit Kaur welcomed the new measures for personal reasons.
“I had my wages stolen by two employers, because they knew my visa could be cancelled if I stood up to them, and they took advantage of that,” Kaur said.
“Because I had no security with my visa, I could not take action until it was too late. I never got back any of the money that was stolen from me and my visa is now uncertain.
“This should not have happened to my family, and it should not happen to migrants who are coming to Australia now.”