Cassandra Fernando (Holt, Australian Labor Party) | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) recognises that:

(a) up to one in six recent migrants to Australia is paid less than the minimum wage;

(b) exploitation does not just affect individual workers but effectively drives down wages and worsens conditions for all Australian workers; and

(c) about 20 per cent of anonymous reports and disputes resolved by the Fair Work Ombudsman, and up to 80 per cent of litigations initiated by the Ombudsman in recent years involved migrants;

(2) acknowledges the Government is delivering on its commitment to improving employer compliance in the workplace by:

(a) introducing new criminal offences, additional enforcement tools, increased pecuniary penalties and a prohibition measure; and

(b) enhancing safeguards and protections for workers through co-designing a range of initiatives; and

(3) commends the Government for introducing stronger protections for temporary migrant workers to ensure a better future for all workers.

I support the Albanese Labor government's remarkable reforms to reducing migrant worker exploitation in Australia. My electorate, like several others across the country, is home to a large number of people born overseas. Many of them moved to Australia during their working lives to live in a country where they believed they could earn a fair day's wage for a fair day's work, be guaranteed work rights essential for a productive economy and be protected from harassment and coercion in the workplace. Most migrants, including me and my family, were in for a rude shock.

I started working at several fast-food and hospitality chains from an early age to supplement the income I used to receive from working in retail. Early on I noticed the stark contrast in the treatment of migrant workers, like me, and the treatment of my Australian-born colleagues. We were offered employment only if we agreed to work for cash in hand. Our super contributions were overlooked and when asked about it the excuses ranged from 'administrative errors' to lies such as, 'Only Australian citizens receive super.' Unpaid overtime became the rule, not the exception. Any protest against this treatment was responded to with threats that we would be reported to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, as it was known at the time, for breaking the law, even though we were forced to do so.

Some of you might ask, if that was the treatment at a workplace, why did you not change jobs? The fact is that, many times when the line was pushed too far, we did. But we realised that this exploitation was systematic. The constant underpayment, rorting and harassment were not limited to a particular employer. Instead, they were endemic and quickly dampened any hope of being treated fairly in the workplace.

Plenty of research conducted since then reflects the experiences migrants often go through. The Grattan Institute noted in one of their reports that one in six recent migrants are paid below the minimum wage, and a report by Unions NSW reached similar conclusions. Temporary visa holders make up four per cent of the workforce, but in 2021-22 they made up 26 per cent of all litigations initiated for breaching the Fair Work Act. For a decade, the previous government put the safety of migrant workers at the bottom by failing to implement the recommendations of the Migrant Workers Taskforce report. All workers in Australia should be safe and feel protected at work, regardless of their visa status, and it hurts all workers when employers engage in a race to the bottom.

The Migration Amendment (Strengthening Employer Compliance) Bill 2023 will provide greater penalties to target unethical employers who mistreat and exploit vulnerable migrant workers on temporary visas. By establishing a criminal offence to deter employers from coercing, unduly influencing or pressuring a temporary migrant worker to breach a work related visa condition, the bill will protect employees who are on the weaker end of the power imbalance. In addition, it will be an offence for employers to use a person's immigration status to exploit them in the workplace. Employers who engage in improper practices, such as underpaying or otherwise breaching their obligations in the employment of workers, will also be prohibited from hiring any additional people on temporary visas for a period. The Australian Border Force will be provided with new tools to improve compliance outcomes, modelled on measures available to Fair Work inspectors.

I commend the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Andrew Giles MP, for introducing these reforms, and I would also like to wish Andrew Giles MP a happy 50th birthday. I am proud the Albanese Labor government is delivering stronger protections to ensure a better future for all workers in this country. I thank the House.

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