Jump to Share article Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Email Share link via email Jump to heading On 5 June 2023, the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Andrew Giles alongside the Minister for Home Affairs, Claire O’Neil and the Minister for Industrial Relations of Australia, Tony Burke announced legal and non-legal measures to protect migrant workers at risk of exploitation. The measures to be introduced include: Making it a criminal offence to coerce someone into breaching their visa condition. Introducing prohibition notices so that employers who have exploited migrant workers will be unable to hire people on temporary visas. Increasing the penalties to deter exploitation and the introduction of new compliance tools Significantly, one of the newly announced measures is to repeal section 235 of the Migration Act 1958 (Cth) which makes it an offence for a temporary visa holder to engage in work if they have a ‘no work’ condition attached to their visa. It is also an offence to work when you do not have a visa. Migrant workers often fear reporting their employer and their experiences of exploitation due to the potential adverse consequences it may have for them. This may be because they do not hold a visa and fear being placed in immigration detention and deportation. They may not have the right to work in Australia or be forced to work beyond their work rights; therefore, reporting may impact them continuing to hold their visa or affect a future visa application process. Migrant workers are often unable to pursue legal action against their exploitative employers due to their lack of visa to remain in Australia to pursue a claim. Therefore, the measures announced by the government are a step in the right direction. Circle Green Community Legal is one of over 40 organisations to endorse the Migrant Justice Institute, the Human Rights Law Centre, and law academics at UTS and UNSW proposal “Breaking the silence: A proposal for whistle-blower protections to enable migrant workers to address exploitation”[1] in February 2023. In May, the Grattan Institute published its report “Short-changed: How to stop the exploitation of migrant workers in Australia”. The report fully supports the Law Reform suggestions in the “Breaking the Silence” proposal. Recently, the Global Slavery Index and the UN Global Compact Network of Australia have also endorsed the Law Reform proposals. The proposal and the report outline further and more robust measures required to provide migrant workers and temporary visa holders with the safeguards necessary to prevent and protect them from exploitation. Circle Green welcomes the changes and commitment to continue to consult with business, unions, and civil society for the progression on reducing migrant labour exploitation. We look forward to the Federal Labor government’s ongoing engagement and commitment to law and policy reform. [1] https://www.migrantjustice.org/publications-list/breaking-the-silence-whistleblower-protections-to-enable-migrant-workers-to-address-exploitation