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Lei feared speaking out when she was exploited. A new proposal aims to empower migrant workers like her
Lei is chasing her former employer for thousands of dollars in unpaid wages, years after she arrived in Australia to pursue her dreams. Researchers and advocates say migrant worker exploitation is not uncommon.
Published 1 March 2023 11:58am
By Jessica Bahr
Source: SBS News
Image: A new proposal is calling for whistleblower protections for migrant workers. (Getty / Fabio Zignego/ EyeEm)
Key Points
- A new proposal is calling for whistleblower protections for migrant workers who have faced exploitation.
- Breaking the Silence calls for protections to enable exploited migrants to take action against employers.
- According to the Migrant Justice Institute, three-quarters of migrant workers earn below minimum wage.
Lei* came to Australia from Taiwan with a dream of improving her English, obtaining a degree and developing the skills to open her own business.
Instead, she says she was exploited by her former employer and has spent years attempting to recuperate thousands of dollars she is owed.
Lei was studying at university when she began working a casual job at a café in 2019, where she was paid between $13 and $15 per hour for six months, until she was injured during her shift one day.
She says she was removed from the café's WeChat group, could no longer access rosters online, and was unable to return to work.
Lei told SBS News she was researching payment figures online when she realised she was being paid below the . She calculated that her former employer owed her over $9,000.
"It was my hard work, I am worth this amount of money," she said.
"I engaged a solicitor to negotiate and my employer agreed to pay the funds, but unfortunately I went back to Taiwan for Lunar New Year in 2020 and got stuck because of COVID-19."
Lei* says she was paid below the minimum wage at an Australian café. Source: Getty
Two years later, with the support of the Employment Rights Legal Service, she is still attempting to claim the money and believes other people are in similar situations but may be afraid to speak up.
"All the employees working there were international students ... many of the staff are forced to work long hours and overtime, and if they don’t agree, their employment will be terminated," she said.
"At the time, I had this concern ... my hours were more than what was regulated in my visa conditions, but felt like I couldn’t complain and felt a lot of pressure ... it was not easy to get a job, but if I did not work I could not afford to study here."
Lei is not alone.
Proposal for whistleblower protections
Low wages, harsh work environments and long hours .
For those experiencing unlawful conditions, taking action against employers can present a difficult situation. Like Lei, many do not speak out over fears of losing their jobs or jeopardising their visas, but a new proposal is seeking to change that.
The Breaking the Silence proposal, led by the Migrant Justice Institute and Human Rights Law Centre, is calling on the federal government to establish whistleblower protections to support migrant workers reporting workplace exploitation.
The proposal, which is supported by a coalition of over 40 organisations, is calling for protection from visa cancellation for exploited migrant workers who take action against their employer.
It also includes a short-term visa to enable migrants to remain in Australia and pursue legal action where they believe their rights have been breached.
How common is worker exploitation?
The Migrant Justice Institute surveyed 15,000 migrant workers over the past five years and found three-quarters of migrant workers earned below casual minimum wage in Australia. A quarter earned less than half that.
Nine out of 10 underpaid workers took no action, with migrant workers facing the possibility of visas being jeopardised if they report their employers or pursue legal measures.
Whistleblower protections would empower migrant workers to report employers that exploit them because they would not have to fear having their visa cancelled, according to Migrant Workers Centre CEO Matt Kunkel.
“The majority of migrant workers in Australia experience wage theft. Some face even worse forms of abuse at the hands of their employers, who often control their passports," he said.
"Whistleblower protections are essential if we are serious about stamping out workplace exploitation."
Mr Kunkel said many migrant workers face an "impossible situation" and are "forced to choose" between stable employment and secure residency.
“It’s unconscionable that our visa system forces many workers to choose between their residency and their workplace rights," he said.
"These whistleblower protections will empower migrant workers to seek fair employment and be treated as equal members of our communities. The benefits will be felt by all workers."
The Migrant Justice Institute's survey is not the first to highlight migrant wage theft. In December, showed more than 60 per cent of job advertisements reviewed in the nation's top eight industries offered illegal pay rates.
Most of the 7,000 job ads that were analysed were in a foreign language, suggesting many workers are being taken advantage of by those within their own diaspora communities.
More than one-third of migrant workers surveyed reported being paid or offered a lower salary because of their visa type, and more than one-quarter said they received lesser salaries because of their nationality.
In 2017, the former government to protect those who have breached their visa conditions — due to workplace exploitation — from having their visas cancelled, as long as the issue has been reported to the Fair Work Ombudsman and the worker assists with its enquiries.
But the protocol has "not been effective", according to the Breaking the Silence report, with around 15 migrant workers using it each year.
SBS News has contacted the Department of Home Affairs for comment.
*Name has been changed
