Senate debates

Tuesday, 20 June 2006

Questions without Notice

Skilled Migration

2:12 pm

Photo of Gavin MarshallGavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

My question is to Senator Vanstone, the Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs. Is the minister aware of comments attributed to her in today’s Australian Financial Review about 24 foreign workers employed by ABC Tissue Products at Wetherill Park in Sydney that said that there were some irregularities with the payments they were making to visa holders that required attention? Can the minister explain what the irregularities with the payments were? Were the foreign workers being underpaid or overworked, or is it the case that these workers are in fact unskilled? What actions did the department or the minister take to make sure that Australian skilled tradespeople were not available to do the same work? Is the minister now prepared to table the report prepared by her department after its visit to ABC Tissue on 28 August 2005, as well as the department’s correspondence with the company about guest workers employed at the work site?

Photo of Amanda VanstoneAmanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | | Hansard source

I thank the senator for the question. I did not see the Lateline report that I think started this matter in the public arena, but I can say that the allegations are being investigated by my department and any relevant state and federal agencies. On 16 June, departmental officials in Guangzhou met with representatives of the Hunan industrial equipment installation company to discuss the allegations. On 20 June, the department and the Office of Workplace Services will visit ABC Tissue to make further inquiries—so I am expecting that to happen today. On 23 June, the department will meet with the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union to discuss further issues that they have raised. Occupational health and safety concerns have been referred to New South Wales WorkCover. I hope that what I have said to you at this point indicates that, if allegations are made about people misusing these visas, they will be investigated, certainly by federal agencies. I have had no indication to this point that state agencies would not feel exactly the same way because, in some cases, they are involved.

We do take seriously any allegations made about misuse of this visa. Whether it is underpayment, whether it is not being frank about the skill levels—those not being up to what is required—or any other form of exploitation, it is certainly taken very seriously by us. And the reason it is taken seriously is that this visa is a very valuable visa to Australian industry. It allows Australian industry to be able to respond to opportunities in the market by getting in the skills it needs and getting them in quickly and therefore to protect itself and to grow, and therefore to secure the jobs of Australian workers. That is of course why we take these matters very seriously. Much more than that I cannot tell you until these inquiries have been completed.

Photo of Gavin MarshallGavin Marshall (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | | Hansard source

Mr President, I ask a supplementary question. My question went to your quote, Minister, in the Australian Financial Review today that ‘there were some irregularities with the payments they were making to visa holders that required attention’. I again ask the minister: what were those irregularities? Is the minister completely satisfied that the 24 foreign workers engaged by ABC Tissue are being paid and treated properly? Does the minister know whether these workers are being paid at at least the minimum hourly award rate and working no more than 38 hours a week at the normal rate of pay? If not, doesn’t this mean that the unnamed company executive quoted in the article is right when they say, about the use of guest workers, ‘This is just an attempt to drive down wages’?

Photo of Amanda VanstoneAmanda Vanstone (SA, Liberal Party, Minister for Immigration and Multicultural Affairs) Share this | | Hansard source

I have advice from the department, in relation to those remarks, that there were some irregularities. But I would not in the normal course of events, when inquiries are still being undertaken by other agencies, seek to become the inquirer myself. The reason we give other agencies these jobs is so that they can do them and do them at arm’s length from the minister, which I think is appropriate. So I have advice that there were some irregularities and I expect the inquiries to be completed by all relevant agencies. At that point, we will know what the truth of the matter is and we will be able to deal with it.