Tony Sheldon (NSW, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Accountability is the hallmark of parliament, and of course you would expect that questions put by Senator Kristina Keneally to the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship, Migration Services and Multicultural Affairs on 12 August 2019 would be answered. You would expect that there would be an attempt to turn around and answer some very serious questions that are confronting the immigration and visa system and challenges that we are facing this country.

In 2016 one of questions asked was: 'When in 2016 did the minister first become aware of the current surge in asylum seeker applications from citizens in Malaysia? When did the minister first become aware of the current surge of asylum seeker applications from citizens of China?' That's a very fundamental, critical question on how the government is responding to weaknesses that are clearly appearing within our visa system.

You then go to the government's talking points that were released on 14 October, much to their surprise. A government that have been in power for six years state in one of their talking points that their response to exploited workers—such as the ones that were talked about in the questions raised by Senator Kristina Keneally—should be, 'The exploitation of any worker in Australia is something we have zero tolerance for.' This is what's happening at the moment with regard to migrant wage theft. Two-thirds of migrant workers reported that their employer, at one point or another, failed to provide a payslip, with 44 per cent reporting that they have never received a payslip for their work. Twenty-eight per cent of workers in the hospitality industry had experienced their employer confiscating their passport. Almost a third of surveyed participants earned $12 per hour or less—some as little as $4. Of course, $12 per hour is approximately half the minimum wage for a casual employee. Almost half of the participants earned $15 per hour or less. These statistics are from the National Temporary Migrant Work Survey by the Migrant Worker Justice Initiative from the University of New South Wales and UTS in November 2017. We've seen a situation where migrant workers are grossly underpaid. In the case of penalty rates, between 45 and 76 per cent of workers are underpaid or not paid penalty rates. Fifty-one per cent of workers are not paid or are underpaid for overtime. Sixty per cent of workers do not have tax withheld by their employers. Thirty-nine per cent of workers have had entitlements withheld. The source of that statistic is the Ending wage theft report from the McKell Institute in March 2019.

But don't worry. The government have an answer—not an answer to questions; not an answer to the serious matters raised by Senator Keneally, 'The exploitation of any worker in Australia is something we have zero tolerance for.' In the 2018 Harvest Trail, where investigations were carried out by Fair Work, they issued 150 formal cautions and 132 infringement notices totalling $155,390. They then started going through a number of companies. These are just a few of the companies that they discovered were ripping off migrant workers: LetUsGrow Hydroponics Pty Ltd, where $37,781 was recovered for four employees; TDS International Investment, $92,381; $40,000 was recovered from Brownlow Enterprises; and Maroochy Sunshine, a $186,000 penalty against the company and a $41,300 penalty against sole director, Mr Bani. But has that had any effect in dealing with the thieves?

I recall John Howard saying—and, of course, we hear this from the conservatives too many times—'We will decide who comes into this country.' Minister Dutton and Prime Minister Morrison are in effect saying that criminals, wage thieves, organised crime participants and human traffickers will decide who comes into this country, because they're the ones who profit from it and the government's policies encourage it. There is lack of accountability and a lack of answers. It's because they simply don't care about what's happened to the Australian community. When the migrants are exploited, when wages are stolen and when criminal gangs operate, it steals from decent employers who employ people correctly; it steals from people who are doing the right thing; it steals from Australians who are looking for jobs. Fundamentally, this government have to be held to account for their obligations to the Australian community, their obligations to Australian workers and their obligations to migrant workers who find themselves working in this country. I always find it amusing when the government turns around and says—rightly, and I think we all share this view—that when people come to this country, and particularly when visa holders come to this country, there is an opportunity to have quid quo pro. That sense is about people having a good experience here. People, particularly students, that might want to carry on other careers back in their home countries will have an experience about what Australia is like. But what Australia is like under this government is wage theft. What Australia is like under this government is people not turning around and making a difference, let alone answering the questions that can make the difference. When you answer the questions, it drives results and it drives accountability. That is what this parliament is for.