Stricter Requirements and Harsher Penalties Introduced for Employers with Employees on Temporary Visas
The Exposure Draft Migration Amendment (Protecting Migrant Workers) Bill 2021 was released in July 2021. The ongoing reports and issues concerning the exploitation of migrant workers have prompted the Morrison Government to review the penalties and restrictions in place for Australian employers employing individuals on temporary visas. The draft Bill currently proposes increased penalties and stricter requirements to check the status and condition of visa holders. These include:
Increased penalties for non-compliance
Penalties of imprisonment and/or fines for coercing a visa holder to breach their visa conditions or pressure them to work
A new framework prohibiting employers from employing additional non-citizens. This means visa holders not on a temporary sponsored visa, such as student visa holders or working holiday visa holders.
Penalties to bar employers from employing any temporary visa holder if they breach the above
The proposals in the bill have been drafted based on the recommendations of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce who have worked to protect vulnerable workers, especially in the last decade where the increase of temporary visa holders has also resulted in an increase in exploitation.
A key finding from the Taskforce was the significant number of individuals on ‘non-sponsored’ visas who were being exploited, in particular student visa holders or individuals on working holidays.
Barring Employers with Employees on Temporary Visas
Currently, the Department may prohibit employers from sponsoring employees, such as a Temporary Skilled Shortage (Subclass 482) Visa. However, the Draft Bill proposes to impose a penalty to bar employers from employing any temporary visa holder if they have been found guilty of committing an offence such as, coercing their employees to breach conditions and/or blackmailing them with such information.
This ban would extend to:
Student and graduate visa holders;
Working holiday visa holders; and
Smaller programs
The ban has serious consequences as it may also result in a subsequent ban to other sponsored visa program such as the Temporary Skill Shortage (Subclass 482) and Employer Nomination Scheme (Subclass 186) program.
The significance of these serious proposals indicate the Government’s intention to provide critical and desperate protections to vulnerable migrant workers that have been heavily exploited in the past.
The Draft Bill is currently open to the public till Monday 16 August (Midnight AEST) for those who wish to provide a submission in response to the Draft Bill. Available at: Exposure Draft Migration Amendment Bill Submissions.
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