Nick Champion (Wakefield, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes:

(a) the recent media reports and the Fair Work Ombudsman (Ombudsman) finding about the abuse of employees, including Working Holiday visa holders (subclass 417) and Temporary Work (Skilled) visa holders (subclass 457) by Baiada Poultry Pty Limited (Baiada);

(b) complaints against Baiada included that employees were being underpaid, forced to work extremely long hours and required to pay high rents for overcrowded and unsafe employee accommodation;

(c) Baiada and its labour-hire contractors failed to work with the Ombudsman during the inquiry into its employment practices, including:

(i) refusing permission for Fair Work Inspectors working on this inquiry to access the factory floor at its worksites;

(ii) failing to provide the inquiry with any ‘significant or meaningful’ documentation on the nature and terms of its labour contract arrangements; and

(iii) producing inadequate, inaccurate and/or fabricated records to inspectors;

(d) the findings of the Ombudsman are damning of the governance and employment practices of Baiada; and

(e) that these reports and the employment practices of Baiada have caused significant community concern which must be addressed; and

(2) calls on the management of Baiada to immediately address the findings of the Ombudsman and bring its employment practices up to community expectations.

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