Anthony Chisholm (Queensland, Australian Labor Party, Assistant Minister for Education) Share this | Hansard source

I thank those who've contributed to this debate. Australia is a safe and prosperous country in which to live, work, study and travel. We must work hard to ensure that this remains. So many workers who hold a visa make essential contributions to our economy, whether it's through their work in agriculture, hospitality, construction and aged care or in our hospitals and universities. We have an obligation to ensure their rights are respected in the workplace. Unfortunately, there are too many situations where people are exploited. Unaddressed exploitation puts downward pressure on wages and conditions for all workers. It creates a competitive disadvantage for all those employers who do the right thing. The migration amendment bill will strengthen the compliance and enforcement framework available under the Migration Act. The bill provides a framework to strengthen employer compliance and to help ensure that law-abiding Australian employers are not undercut by unscrupulous competitors.

The government has made a number of amendments. I thank the Legal and Constitutional Affairs Legislation Committee for the spirit in which the inquiry was undertaken, as these amendments improve the bill. These amendments focus on providing clarity and transparency, and they provide assurance the bill is comprehensive. I can also note, in response to Senator McKim earlier today, that the bill will of course continue its deep engagement with civil society, unions and indeed business organisations as further work is developed. This will include our platform commitments concerning protection against cancellation and encouraging people to speak up. This will occur in the coming weeks and months. It is time to move ahead with these reforms to protect workers. The government has made a strong commitment to tackling exploitation and has taken a number of steps already to acquit this. This bill is another important milestone in the government's reform agenda. I commend this bill to the chamber.

Question agreed to.

(Quorum formed)

Bill read a second time.