FACT SHEET A FAIRER TEMPORARY WORK VISA SYSTEM

FACT SHEET A FAIRER TEMPORARY WORK VISA SYSTEM

A FAIRER TEMPORARY WORK VISA SYSTEM Australia s temporary work visa system needs to work for everyone, not just big employers who are looking to undercut local wages and conditions. When there are 1.8 million Australians who either can t get a job or can t get enough hours at work, it s time to focus on making our temporary work visa system fairer for local workers. What s the problem? There are currently over 1 million people on some form of temporary work visa in Australia. At the same time unemployment is more than 10 percent in parts of Australia, and youth unemployment is double that. Underemployment is at record highs, while wages are growing at the slowest rate on record. Australians benefit from a productive, growing and open economy, and having the right skilled workers helps support our economic growth. But Australian workers should not be excluded from good jobs because employers are turning to temporary work visas as an alternative to local hiring. Labor tightened the rules on temporary work visas when we were last in office. This has helped bring the overall number of workers coming in on some categories like 457 visas under better control. But worryingly, we are now seeing a rise in the number of 457s granted for jobs like cooks, bricklayers and café managers that should easily be filled by local workers. And we are hearing more and more worrying reports of exploitation of workers on other types of visas, harming those workers and undercutting standards across the labour market as a whole. Temporary skilled workers Temporary skilled migrants give Australia s industries access to specialised skills when they can t find these at home. But we must ensure that 457 visas are not used to replace Australian workers, undercut employment standards or let companies off the hook on training the next generation of skilled workers. Since coming to power, the Liberal National Coalition has cut $1 billion from apprenticeships support, resulting in the numbers of apprentices falling by more than 128,000. At the same time there are still 651 jobs on the latest Consolidated Sponsored Occupations List. Workers who come to Australia on an employer-sponsored visa are also more vulnerable than in a traditional employment relationship, because their bosses have the power to influence whether these workers remain in the country. We must put the right safeguards in place to ensure the 457 visa program is not abused as an industrial tool or used to displace local workers. Skilled worker visas must come with appropriate safeguards, including ensuring workers receive Australian conditions of employment. The underpayment of temporary workers ultimately undermines Australian job opportunities and local wages and conditions more broadly. There are currently around 95,000 workers in Australia under the 457 temporary skilled worker visa program. Associated with those workers are another 76,000 secondary visa holders with work rights, who may take up jobs in any industry or role. Temporary unskilled workers - students International education is Australia's third largest export sector, contributing about $18 billion a year to our economy. In June 2016 there were over 400,000 student visa holders in Australia the highest number ever recorded.1 1. https://www.border.gov.au/reportsandpublications/documents/statistics/student-visa-trends- 2015-16.pdf 1

Unfortunately, the rise in visa grants has been accompanied by a spike in reports of exploitation of student visa holders at work. Cases such as the 7-Eleven exploitation scandal have revealed some international students are being forced to work for less than half the minimum wage, and pressured into breaching their visa conditions by working far more than 20 hours a week. It is against Australia s values to see any worker exploited on the job. The rise in complaints is also having a detrimental impact on this country s reputation as an international education provider. Temporary unskilled workers working holiday makers In 2015-16 there were 214,000 tourists in Australia on working holiday visas.2 These workers are critically important to fill seasonal gaps in some industries like agriculture and tourism. But they can be entirely unsuitable for other industries like construction, as the recent deaths on worksites prove. The Working Holiday Maker visa programs were designed to encourage cultural exchange and closer ties between Australia and eligible countries. But these visas are now treated by many applicants as simply another way to come to Australia and work. Some businesses and labour hire firms are also increasingly viewing the visas as a simple way of gaining access to cheap, short-term labour. Australia has a substantially larger Working Holiday Maker program than comparable countries like the United Kingdom and Canada. As a result, some industries and companies are now using labour hire agencies to secure bulk labour for their workplaces. This has been at the expense of local workers as these holidaymakers can be cheaper whether through undercutting enterprise agreement rates or through exploitation and sham contracting arrangements. As with student visas, there has been a rise in appalling reports of exploitation of working holiday makers in recent years. A recent Senate inquiry heard allegations of financial, physical and psychological exploitation, with workers being forced to accept uncomfortable and downright unsafe working conditions in order to stay in Australia.3 Labor s plan Labor has a comprehensive plan to make Australia s temporary work visa system fairer for everyone. If Malcolm Turnbull is serious about backing Australian jobs, it s time his Government acted too. Labour Market Testing We would require employers nominating 457 visa workers under labour agreements, and as standard business sponsors, to meet labour market testing requirements under the Migration Act, consistent with Australia s international trade obligations. Labor would also introduce more rigorous evidence requirements for labour market testing to be incorporated into legislation or associated program guidelines, including: A mandatory requirement for all jobs to be advertised as part of labour market testing obligations. A requirement that jobs be advertised for a minimum of four weeks. A requirement for labour market testing to have been conducted no more than four months before the nomination of a 457 visa worker. A ban on job advertisements that target only overseas workers or specified visa class workers to the exclusion of Australian citizens and permanent residents. A crackdown on job ads that set unrealistic and unwarranted skills and experience requirements for vacant positions, with the effect of excluding otherwise suitable Australian applicants. Labor would also review the process for developing and maintaining the list of skills shortages that allow 457 visas to be granted. 2. https://data.gov.au/dataset/visa-working-holiday-maker/resource/3c82e7e7-0ec9-49c6-98ab- 99dcd86e0687 3. The impact of Australia s temporary work visa programs on the Australian labour market and on temporary work visa holders 2

Labour Agreements Labor would require that sponsors in specified sectors who have more than a set proportion of their total workforce made up of 457 visa holders must employ these guest workers under a Labour Agreement instead of being a standard business sponsor. In the first instance, this policy will apply to sponsors in the construction sector that have more than 15 per cent of their workforce made up of 457 visa holders, and those with five or more 457 visa holders. To ensure that all stakeholders can make an informed assessment of a Labour Agreement, the information and evidence a sponsor is required to provide would be strengthened to include, as a minimum: The evidence for claiming that the nominated occupations, and the number of positions for each occupation, will be required over the life of the agreement, and the evidence for claiming these positions cannot be filled by Australian citizens or permanent residents. Evidence of recent and ongoing recruitment efforts, including evidence of the wage rates the jobs have been advertised at and any relocation assistance that has been offered to allow Australian workers to take up the positions. Australian Jobs Test Labor would require the Minister for Immigration to consider a range of factors before entering a Labour Agreement, including: Whether the Agreement will support or create Australian jobs. A labour market needs statement provided by the employer demonstrating why they need to use temporary skilled migration (writing into the Migration Act requirements currently set out in Departmental guidelines for project-based work agreements). A training plan adopted by the employer showing how they will improve the skills of local workers. Whether the 457 visa workers will be able to transfer skills to Australian workers. An overseas worker support plan showing how the employer will provide 457 visa workers with support and assistance during their stay in Australia, including information about workplace entitlements and community services. Labor would take into account the principles and objectives of the Australian Jobs Test for the duration of Labour Agreements. This would include redundancy arrangements and any demonstrable incidents of unconscionable or sham practices outside the Agreement that breach the spirit and intent of the Australian Jobs Test. The Australian Jobs Test would be an additional requirement on top of the need to conduct labour market testing for each individual position, and not act as a substitute for it. Licencing and Skills Assessment Labor would strengthen enforcement of the skills assessment and occupational licencing requirements by creating new criteria and conditions for 457 visa workers in occupations where it is mandatory to hold a licence, registration or membership. For example, this would apply in trades such as electrical or plumbing occupations where workers must hold State and Territory occupational licences. The new criteria will require visa applicants who hold a passport from a nominated country or Special Administrative Region in these occupations to either hold the relevant licence when they apply for a visa, or undertake a mandatory skills assessment (except where inconsistent with Australia s international obligations), to demonstrate that they meet the requirements for obtaining a licence. These criteria will need to be met for the Minister to grant a 457 visa. 3

New visa conditions would require 457 visa holders in licenced occupations: Not to perform the occupation before obtaining a licence. To obtain the licence within 60 days of arriving in Australia. To provide the Department of Immigration with documentation showing they hold the licence within 60 days, and indicating any conditions or requirements imposed on their licence, before they perform the occupation. To comply with any conditions on the licence. Not to engage in any work which is inconsistent with the licence or conditions imposed on the licence. To notify the Department of any changes to their licence or the conditions imposed on the licence. Labor would also ensure that there is greater inter-agency cooperation and data sharing between the Department of Immigration and relevant State and Territory licencing and registration bodies to establish a public register of licenced-occupation visa holders, in each profession and in each State and Territory. Student and working holiday maker visas Labor wants to make sure the student visa and working holiday maker programs are used for their intended purposes, that the students and guest workers are not exploited, and that Australian young people are not denied opportunities as a result of the rampant growth in these programs. While the Turnbull Government continues pretending there is no problem, we will be consulting with the community, workers and industry to determine how best to ensure these programs are not misused in the future. Labor s record Only Labor has taken a consistent approach to implementing effective and tough 457 visa laws, and strengthening the Fair Work Ombudsman to ensure workplace standards are upheld in Australian workplaces. In 2013, Labor strengthened Australia s 457 visa laws to ensure that employers had to look locally first before hiring temporary overseas workers. From Opposition, we established the 2015 Senate inquiry into the impact of Australia s temporary work visa programs on the Australian labour market. The inquiry uncovered a business model of abuse right across the working visa classes 457s, working holiday makers and international students which the Turnbull Government has so far failed to act against. The Liberal alternative The Liberal Government has a shameful record in failing to act to stamp out cases of exploitation within the temporary work visa system. The Abbott-Turnbull Government has softened our temporary work visa laws, including by relaxing the English proficiency requirements to make it easier for employers to bring in less skilled workers. Since then there has been a significant increase in the number of temporary workers doing jobs that could be filled by Australians. For example, the average number of 457 visas granted for cooks each year has more than doubled since Labor s time in office. Visa grants are also up for jobs like bricklayers, carpenters and even café managers good jobs that shouldn t need overseas workers to fill. 4

Financial implications ($m) If the Turnbull Government does not act to implement these important reforms to Australia s temporary work visa system, Labor in Government will ensure the Department of Immigration is properly resourced to do so. 5

Authorised by N. Carroll, Australian Labor Party, 5/9 Sydney Ave, Barton ACT 2600.