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Report
Government introduces protections for migrant workers
ABC NEWS (Australia)
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7/30/2024
The Federal Government has quietly introduced a new Visa for migrant workers. The Visa is the result of years of lobbying by advocates for workers from overseas, who say they are vulnerable to exploitation.
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00:00
This new visa that came into effect last Wednesday is specifically designed for migrant workers
00:08
who have no other way to stay in the country and fight cases of exploitation or wage theft
00:16
or other issues they've had with their employers.
00:19
This visa can be granted for between 6 to 12 months and it can be recurring, but you
00:25
need the support of a higher level migration lawyer or of that ilk to get this visa applied
00:32
for and granted.
00:34
I sat down with one of those lawyers, Sanmati Verma from the Human Rights Law Centre, who
00:40
has been lobbying for these sorts of visas for a very long time.
00:44
She has explained to me exactly what has just been granted and allowed by the Federal Government
00:49
as part of a two year trial.
00:52
First is a guarantee against visa cancellation for exploited workers, so a boss can't turn
00:56
around and simply threaten to report you to immigration if you stand up to him.
01:00
And secondly, a visa to allow you to remain in Australia if you take action against your
01:04
employer.
01:05
So these are what we've been pushing for and they're protections that have been announced.
01:09
So advocates like Sanmati Verma there have for long argued that Australia's migration
01:14
system essentially tethers migrant workers to their employers and that is because to
01:20
get a 457 visa, which allows you to stay in the country for several years and is a
01:25
path to permanency in our country, that is tethered to your employer.
01:30
And that, migrant advocates say, silences them from speaking up around things like wage
01:36
theft, underpayment, overwork and many other issues.
01:40
In fact, Sanmati Verma, since those visas were just announced, she told me this quite
01:46
shocking story of a woman who has been raising allegations of sexual harassment and stalking
01:52
against her former boss and company.
01:55
She had no visa to allow her to stay in the country and was at the stage of selling her
01:58
fridge to leave in just a few weeks' time.
02:01
And it is only because of those visa protections announced there that this woman may now be
02:05
able to stay in the country and fight that case.
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