Establishment
1.1
The Senate Select Committee on Temporary Migration (the committee) was established on 5 December 2019, pursuant to the agreement of the Senate, to inquire and report by 2 December 2020 on the impact temporary migration has on the Australian economy, wages and jobs, social cohesion and workplace rights and conditions, with particular reference to:
(a)
government policy settings, including their impact on the employment prospects and social cohesion of Australians;
(b)
the impact of temporary skilled and unskilled migration on Australia's labour market;
(c)
policy responses to challenges posed by temporary migration;
(d)
whether permanent migration offers better long-term benefits for Australia's economy, Australian workers and social cohesion;
(e)
the impact of wage theft, breaches of workplace rights and conditions, modern slavery and human trafficking on temporary migrants; and
1.2
The committee was required to present its final report on or before 2 December 2020. Following a resolution of the committee on 22 September 2020, and in accordance with the temporary motion agreed by the Senate on 23 March 2020, the reporting date for the inquiry was extended to 5 August 2021.
1.3
Additionally, following a resolution of the committee on 13 May 2021, a motion was agreed to by the Senate on 17 June 2021 to extend the reporting date for the inquiry until 2 September 2021.
Conduct of the inquiry
1.4
In accordance with usual practice, the committee advertised the inquiry on its website, and wrote to relevant individuals and organisations inviting submissions. The date for receipt of submissions was 5 March 2020. The committee extended the date for submissions to 30 July 2020. The committee received 131 submissions, which are listed at Appendix 1.
1.5
The committee held 10 public hearings as listed below:
Canberra on 10 September 2020;
Canberra on 17 September 2020;
Canberra on 30 September 2020;
Canberra on 14 October 2020;
Canberra on 18 November 2020;
Canberra on 19 March 2021;
Melbourne on 21 April 2021;
Mildura on 22 April 2021;
Canberra on 30 June 2021; and
Canberra on 28 July 2021.
1.6
The committee also undertook a site visit, as detailed below.
1.7
On 22 April 2021, following the public hearing in Mildura, the committee received a private briefing from Mr Dominic Surgie, President, Sunraysia Table Grape Growers Association, and toured the farm.
1.8
The committee had intended to travel to parts of the Harvest Trail in Queensland and New South Wales, and to Tasmania, but due to travel restrictions as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the committee was not able to travel as originally planned.
1.9
The list of witnesses who participated in the public hearings is at Appendix 2.
Acknowledgment
1.11
The committee would like to thank the organisations and individuals who provided evidence to the committee and participated in the inquiry.
Structure of the report
1.12
The report is structured as follows:
Chapter 1 provides information about the context and administrative details of the inquiry;
Chapter 2 provides an overview of Australia's temporary migration programme;
Chapter 3 examines temporary migration and the Australian economy and labour market;
Chapter 4 explores the exploitation of temporary visa holders in Australian workplaces;
Chapter 5 considers pathways to permanency;
Chapter 6 examines improvements to Australia's regulatory framework; and
Chapter 7 concludes with the committee view and recommendations.
Previous inquiries
1.13
A range of inquiries and reports into Australia's temporary migration programme have been conducted into matters that fall under the committee's terms of reference. The Harvest Trail Inquiry conducted by the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and the Report of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce (the Taskforce) is examined below, as well as a parliamentary inquiry by the Joint Standing Committee on Migration into the Working Holiday Maker program.
Fair Work Ombudsman, Harvest Trail Inquiry
1.14
In response to employee and community concerns about non-compliance with Australian workplace laws, the FWO commenced an inquiry into workplace arrangements on the Harvest Trail in August 2013. The FWO focused on visiting and revisiting Harvest Trail regions to help employers and employees understand their workplace rights and obligations.
1.15
The inquiry report, published in November 2018, identified five key findings relating to workplace arrangements along the Harvest Trail:
widespread non-compliance amongst employers investigated;
significant reliance by growers on overseas workers;
a negative impact where labour hire arrangements were used illegally; and
low consumer awareness and unwillingness to pay more for ‘domestic fair trade’ produce contributes to exploitation.
1.16
The inquiry resulted in a number of compliance and enforcement outcomes, including:
7 Enforceable Undertakings
commencement of 8 legal proceedings.
1.17
As a result of the activities listed above, the FWO recovered more than $1 million for over 2000 employees.
1.18
The inquiry found that a combination of factors contributed to an environment where breaches of workplace laws were more likely. These included: poor supply chain governance and multiple levels of subcontracting; misapplication of piece rates; the high proportion of vulnerable workers including visa holders, and non-workplace relations issues including lack of consumer information regarding worker conditions involved in providing fresh food produce; and ongoing issues relating to labour supply and demand such as accommodation and transport services.
1.19
In order to address the key findings of the report, the FWO formulated an action plan, as outlined below:
1. Establish a Harvest Trial Working Group
The FWO will establish a Harvest Trail Working Group within the FWO, to coordinate and prioritise the next phase of education, engagement and compliance activities for the Harvest Trail.
The Harvest Trail Working Group will consult with stakeholders as appropriate to inform its work. This will include the referral of this report and the consumer research report to the Migrant Workers’ Taskforce.
2. Enhance compliance through information, education, and support
The Harvest Trail Working Group will help growers achieve enduring compliance with workplace laws by partnering with key intermediaries including horticulture industry bodies, such as Growcom, and community organisations. They will work with these groups to educate growers and their employees on their workplace rights and obligations, including the rules around contracting labour, record-keeping and pay slips and piecework arrangements. This will involve working with the sector regarding the drivers of non-compliance and co-designing solutions that drive behavioural change.
The Harvest Trail Working Group will also take forward the findings of the consumer research, by working with key government and non-government partners to develop a coordinated and sustainable communications campaign, informing consumers of how they can play a role in addressing exploitation in the horticulture sector through greater awareness of the ‘true cost’ of fruit and vegetables.
3. Enhance the regulatory framework
The Harvest Trail Working Group will work closely with government departments and agencies to enhance the regulatory framework that governs the rights and obligations of all Harvest Trail workplace participants, by collaborating on a range of initiatives, including:
Operationalising recommendations of the Commonwealth Government’s Migrant Workers’ Taskforce relating to the employment of labour on the Harvest Trail.
Operationalising recommendations of the Black Economy Taskforce as they relate to record-keeping and pay slip provisions on the Harvest Trail. This includes establishing communication channels to exchange information with AUSTRAC on suspicious money transfers and persons of interest.
Subject to the passage of the legislation, monitoring the impact of the Commonwealth Parliament’s Modern Slavery Bill 2018 as it relates to major fruit and vegetable retailers.
4. Build a culture of compliance on the Harvest Trail
The Harvest Trail Working Group will prioritise operational activities on the Harvest Trail and collaborate with a range of key stakeholders to reach as many industry participants and consumers as possible.
Specifically, the FWO will seek to:
include the Harvest Trail in the FWO’s priority areas for proactive compliance and enforcement activities, ensuring that results are well publicised
leverage the record-keeping provisions detailed in the ‘Protecting Vulnerable Workers’ legislation to target seriously non-compliant businesses
ensure clarity around the understanding and application of various labour hire licensing schemes
explore the opportunity for compliance partnerships with leading horticulture sector businesses
leverage recommendations and outcomes from the Migrant Worker Taskforce as they relate to the Harvest Trail.
5. Report to government and stakeholders
The FWO will provide this report to:
the Commonwealth Minister for Jobs and Industrial Relations
Professor Alan Fels, Chair - Migrant Workers Taskforce
key stakeholders associated with the Harvest Trail.
Migrant Workers' Taskforce
1.20
The Taskforce was established in May 2016 to 'identify proposals for improvements in law, law enforcement and investigation, and other practical measures to more quickly identify and rectify any cases of migrant worker exploitation'. The Taskforce was chaired by Professor Allan Fels AO and Dr David Cousins AM, and comprised representatives from a range of Commonwealth agencies.
1.21
The Taskforce consulted with representatives from community, government and industry bodies, and conducted a range of stakeholder meetings. The Taskforce held two stakeholder roundtables in Melbourne and Sydney in July 2017 where the Taskforce heard directly from legal organisations, community groups, academics, industry and representative bodies on policy responses and possible remedies for the exploitation of migrant workers in Australian workplaces. Further, throughout their tenure with the Taskforce, Professor Fels and Dr Cousins actively shared the work of the Taskforce through presentations at a number of industry and academic seminars.
1.22
The final Report of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce was publicly released in March 2019 and contained 22 recommendations aimed at improving workplace protections for vulnerable migrant workers. The Government Response, released alongside the final report, accepted in principle all 22 recommendations. The 22 recommendations are outlined below:
Recommendation 1: The Government establish a whole of government mechanism to further the work of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce following its completion.
Recommendation 2: A whole of government approach to the information and education needs of migrant workers be developed. It is recommended that this approach be informed by findings of the research project, The Information Needs of Vulnerable Temporary Migrant Workers about Workplace Laws, with implementation of the following measures:
improve the delivery and accessibility of personalised, relevant information to provide the right messages at the right time to migrant workers;
use behavioural approaches to encourage and advise migrant workers how to take action if they are not being paid correctly;
enhance the promotion of products and services already available from government agencies — particularly in-language information — through search engine optimisation, expanded use of social media channels, and cross-promotion of Fair Work Ombudsman material by other agencies;
improve messaging in government information products so they are translated, simple, clear and consistent; and
work with industry and community stakeholders to educate employers and address misconceptions about the rights and entitlements of migrant workers in Australian workplaces.
Recommendation 3: Legislation be amended to clarify that temporary migrant workers working in Australia are entitled at all times to workplace protections under the Fair Work Act 2009.
Recommendation 4: Legislation be amended to prohibit persons from advertising jobs with pay rates that would breach the Fair Work Act 2009.
Recommendation 5: The general level of penalties for breaches of wage exploitation related provisions in the Fair Work Act 2009 be increased to be more in line with those applicable in other business laws, especially consumer laws.
Recommendation 6: For the most serious forms of exploitative conduct, such as where that conduct is clear, deliberate and systemic, criminal sanctions be introduced in the most appropriate legislative vehicle.
Recommendation 7: The Government give the courts specific power to make additional enforcement orders, including adverse publicity orders and banning orders, against employers who underpay migrant workers.
Recommendation 8: The Fair Work Act 2009 be amended by adoption of the model provisions relating to enforceable undertakings and injunctions contained in the Regulatory Powers (Standard Provisions) Act 2014 (Cth).
Recommendation 9: The Fair Work Ombudsman be provided with the same information gathering powers as other business regulators such as the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission.
Recommendation 10: The Government consider whether the Fair Work Ombudsman requires further resourcing, tools and powers to undertake its functions under the Fair Work Act 2009, with specific reference to:
whether vulnerable workers could be encouraged to approach the Fair Work Ombudsman more than at present for assistance;
the balance between the use of the Fair Work Ombudsman's enforcement and education functions;
whether the name of the Fair Work Ombudsman should be changed to reflect its regulatory role;
getting redress for exploited workers, including the use of compliance notices and whether they are fit for purpose;
opportunities for a wider application of infringement notices; and
recent allocations of additional funding.
Recommendation 11: The Government consider additional avenues to hold individuals and businesses to account for their involvement in breaches of workplace laws, with specific reference to:
extending accessorial liability provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009 to also cover situations where businesses contract out services to persons, building on existing provisions relating to franchisors and holding companies; and
amending the Fair Work Act 2009 to provide that the Fair Work Ombudsman can enter into compliance partnership deeds and that they are transparent to the public, subject to relevant considerations such as issues of commercial in confidence.
Recommendation 12: The Government commission a review of the Fair Work Act 2009 small claims process to examine how it can become a more effective avenue for wage redress for migrant workers.
Recommendation 13: The Government extend access to the Fair Entitlements Guarantee program, it should be done following consultation regarding the benefits, costs and risks, and it should exclude people who have deliberately avoided their taxation obligations.
Recommendation 14: In relation to labour hire, the Government establish a National Labour Hire Registration Scheme with the following elements:
focused on labour hire operators and hosts in four high risk industry sectors — horticulture, meat processing, cleaning and security — across Australia;
mandatory for labour hire operators in those sectors to register with the scheme;
a low regulatory burden on labour hire operators in those sectors to join the scheme, with the ability to have their registration cancelled if they contravene a relevant law; and
host employers in four industry sectors are required to use registered labour hire operators.
Recommendation 15: Education providers, including through their education agents, give information to international students on workplace rights prior to coming to Australia and periodically during their time studying in Australia.
Recommendation 16: Education providers, through their overseas students support services, assist international students experiencing workplace issues, including referrals to external support services that are at minimal or no additional cost to the student and that specific reference to this obligation be made in the National Code of Practice for Providers of Education and Training to Overseas Students.
Recommendation 17: The Council for International Education develop and disseminate best practice guidelines for use by educational institutions.
Recommendation 18: The Minister write to the Prime Minister requesting that accommodation issues affecting temporary migrant workers be placed on the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agenda. Through COAG, the Australian Government should work with state and territory governments to address accommodation issues affecting temporary migrant workers — particularly working holiday makers undertaking 'specified work' in regional Australia.
Recommendation 19: The Government consider developing legislation so that a person who knowingly unduly influences, pressures or coerces a temporary migrant worker to breach a condition of their visa is guilty of an offence.
Recommendation 20: The Government explore mechanisms to exclude employers who have been convicted by a court of underpaying temporary migrant workers from employing new temporary visa holders for a specific period.
Recommendation 21: The Fair Work Ombudsman and the Department of Home Affairs undertake a review of the Assurance Protocol within 12 months to assess its effectiveness and whether further changes are needed to encourage migrant workers to come forward with workplace complaints.
Recommendation 22: The Government give a greater priority to build an evidence base and focus its existing research capacity within the Department of Jobs and Small Business on areas affecting migrant workers. It should do this to better understand the extent, nature and causes of any underpayment and exploitation migrant workers may experience. The department should work across departments where appropriate. Separately, and in addition:
(a)
the Department of Education and Training should work with the Council for International Education and peak organisations to help identify mechanisms for providers to collect data about student visa holders' experiences of working in Australia;
(b)
the Department of Education and Training should conduct regular surveys of overseas students that include workplace experience; and
(c)
the Government should support work being undertaken by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES), the science and economics research division of the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources to increase data collection in relation to agricultural labour.
Status of the Taskforce recommendations
1.23
In the course of the inquiry, the committee received evidence on the status of the Taskforce recommendations. The Attorney-General's Department (AGD) advised that it has responsibility for implementing 15 of the 22 recommendations.
1.24
Mr Greg Manning, First Assistant Secretary, AGD, told the committee Recommendation 1, the establishment of an overarching mechanism to monitor implementation of the recommendations, has been completed with a whole-of-government committee. The Migrant Workers Interagency Group, is chaired by the AGD and includes: the Department of Home Affairs (Home Affairs); Australian Border Force (ABF); the Department of Education, Skills and Employment (DESE); the Department of Agriculture, Water and the Environment; the Australian Taxation Office; the FWO; and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT).
1.25
Mr Manning further advised that Recommendation 2, in relation to an approach with information and education needs, is considered complete. Mr Manning explained at the public hearing on 10 September 2020, that Recommendations 15, 16 and 17, relating to the assistance provided by education providers to international students, were also considered complete, with the DESE as the lead agency.
1.26
In an answer to written questions on notice received in October 2020, AGD advised the committee that consultation on the implementation of the vast majority of the Taskforce recommendations, either commenced through public discussion papers released in 2019 and 2020, or is the subject of ongoing consultation with government departments and external stakeholders.
1.27
The Committee sought an update from AGD on the implementation of the Taskforce's recommendations. As at 9 June 2021, the AGD reported that the Australia Government has:
established an interagency group, chaired by the department, to maintain whole of government oversight of work to implement the recommendations (recommendation 1);
extensively consulted with stakeholders on possible reforms to the Fair Work Act 2009 through two discussion papers and the JobMaker Industrial Relations Compliance and Enforcement Working Group (recommendations 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11 and 12);
provided additional resources to the Fair Work Ombudsman to support its work as the national workplace regulator, including providing $47.3 million to the Fair Work Ombudsman in the 2020–21 Budget to: improve public awareness of the regulator and enhance its tools and education resources ($11.3 million); establish an Employer Advisory Service to provide free, tailored, written advice to small business ($12.9million); and establish a dedicated Corporate Sector Assurance Team to identify, investigate and respond to non-compliance by large corporates ($22.3 million) (recommendation 10);
continued consultations on the establishment of a national labour hire registration scheme (recommendations 11 and 14);
compiled a central register of data and research to inform future policy development (recommendation 22);
implemented initiatives to enhance migrant workers' awareness of workplace rights and entitlements, including through information provided in visa grant notices (recommendation 2);
improved and expanded education materials for migrant workers, including dedicated resources on the Fair Work Ombudsman and Study in Australia websites (recommendations 2, 15, 16 and 17);
implemented outcomes from a review of the Fair Work Ombudsman and Department of Home Affairs assurance protocol, and continues to regularly monitor the effective operation of the protocol (recommendation 21); and
improved the collection and analysis of agricultural labour force data by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (recommendation 22).
Joint Standing Committee on Migration, Inquiry into the Working Holiday Maker program
1.28
In June 2020, the Joint Standing Committee on Migration (Joint Committee) conducted an inquiry into the Working Holiday Maker program to ensure the programme was working effectively to support the tourism, health care and agriculture sectors during the COVID-19 pandemic economic recovery. The Joint Committee tabled an interim report in September 2020 and a final report in November 2020.
1.29
The interim report addressed challenges that had arisen from the COVID-19 pandemic, including border closures, and labour shortages in Australia's agricultural and horticultural industries. The interim report made the following 10 recommendations:
Recommendation 1: The Committee recommends that the Government urgently develop and implement a 'Have a Gap Year at Home Campaign' to attract young Australians, particularly the current cohort of Year 12s and university graduates, to undertake regional work. The campaign should:
appeal to young Australians' patriotism and their sense of adventure, enabling them to see their own country and earn money;
appeal to young people who had planned to take a year off to travel and work overseas;
provide young people with work and work experience opportunities at a time when there are fewer casual jobs available to young people; and
give consideration to a Higher Education Contribution Scheme (HECS/HELP) discount for undertaking this work.
Recommendation 2: The Committee recommends that for the next 12 months, the Government enable workers to stay on JobSeeker payments while undertaking low paid agricultural and horticultural work.
Recommendation 3: The Committee recommends that for the next 12 months the Government establish a one-off payment to help with the travel and accommodation costs incurred, to be paid after a certain period of time working in regional, rural and remote areas.
Recommendation 4: The Committee recommends the following amendments be made for the next 12 months to the conditions attached to the Working Holiday Maker visa:
Enable Working Holiday Makers who have undertaken work in key industries in all peri-urban, regional, rural or remote areas, to count their work towards qualifying for a second and/or third year visa.
Allow Working Holiday Makers who have transitioned onto the subclass 408 visa to count essential work undertaken on the 408 visa to support any application to qualify for second and/or third year Working Holiday Maker visas.
Extend the Northern Australia provision, allowing work in hospitality, tourism and other industries to apply in all regional, rural and remote areas.
Enable all Working Holiday Makers to work for the same employer for more than six months, if they are in peri-urban, regional, rural and remote parts of Australia to provide more certainty for visa holders and employers.
Recognise the importance for Working Holiday Makers to move across state borders, particularly between locations where there are high labour force needs and no COVID-19 cases, and facilitate appropriate exemptions and permits subject to approval by health authorities.
Provide further financial and other incentives to encourage Working Holiday Makers who have completed their time in agriculture to stay and engage in more agricultural work.
Recommendation 5: In regard to temporary amendments to other temporary visa categories, the Committee recommends that for the next 12 months, the Government:
Incentivise international student graduates to stay in Australia after completing their studies, by offering an additional year or two for graduates eligible for a subclass 485 Temporary Graduate visa who undertake work in critical industries in peri-urban, regional, rural and remote parts of Australia.
Make available incentive payments or support for transport and accommodation costs to international students who undertake work in peri-urban, regional, rural and remote parts of Australia during non-teaching period.
Enable people on other temporary work visas, such as the subclass 482 Temporary Skill Shortage visa, who have lost their jobs, to work in critical industries in the absence of a specific employer sponsor.
Consider any work students or subclass 482 Temporary Skill Shortage visa holders do in critical industries as counting towards the extension of visas, or where applicable as counting towards a pathway to permanent residency.
Recommendation 6: The Committee recommends that the Government review the necessity for the measures in recommendations 2, 3, 4 and 5 after 12 months.
Recommendation 7: In order to facilitate the restarting of the Working Holiday Maker program and maintain the reputation of the program overseas, the Committee recommends that the Government:
Enable current Working Holiday Maker visa holders who have had to leave the country, or were unable to enter the country and make use of their visas, to reapply for either the 417 or 462 subclass visas, paying a nominal fee with priority processing times.
Extend age limits for current visa holders, if they have exceeded the age limits of 30 or 35 years, while waiting to use their visas. This should also be extended to those who were already granted visas so they can re-enter the country despite exceeding the age limits.
Consider granting visas on a country by country basis as borders start to reopen, prioritising countries where there are lower levels of COVID-19 infection rates. Alternatively, consider prioritising countries where Working Holiday Makers usually undertake work in Australia for which there is the greatest need.
Consider a sponsorship program requiring peak bodies, businesses or governments to help sponsor quarantine arrangements, or alternatively reimburse the costs of quarantine incurred by Working Holiday Makers after a certain period working in jobs where shortages exist.
Recommendation 8: The Committee recommends the establishment of a hotline for Working Holiday Makers where they can access all the advice they need regarding their work rights, workplace exploitation concerns, accommodation and employment options in one place.
Recommendation 9: The Committee recommends that Australians, Working Holiday Makers, and other temporary visa holders be made more aware of the Harvest Trail to enable the service to be better utilised and to facilitate the matching of willing workers to the areas where the need is greatest.
Recommendation 10: The Committee recommends that the Federal Government work with State and Territory governments and industry peak bodies to recruit additional people under the Seasonal Worker Program and Pacific Labour Scheme to fill urgent agricultural shortfalls.
1.30
The Joint Committee tabled its final report in November 2020 and made the following additional 14 recommendations:
Recommendation 1: The Committee recommends that the Government maintains the Working Holiday Maker program and notes its value to Australia.
Recommendation 2: The Committee recommends:
The Department of Home Affairs remains the lead agency with responsibility for the Working Holiday Maker (WHM) program.
An interdepartmental committee (IDC) to provide oversight of the WHM visa be established. The IDC would meet at least twice a year and comprise senior executive officers from departments and agencies with an interest in the WHM to discuss issues arising from the program. The IDC should have the flexibility to meet on an ad hoc basis as the need arises but especially to deal with agricultural and tourism workforce shortages, issues relating to the employment of WHM and the negotiation of agreements with additional countries.
Recommendation 3: The Committee recommends that Working Holiday (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visa holders should be able to work in tourism and hospitality in all hard-to-staff rural and remote areas of Australia as part of their 88 days or 6 months to qualify for their second- or third- year WHM visa.
Recommendation 4: The Committee recommends the Government review the definition of 'regional' for the purposes of migration with a view to providing a new tiered definition that recognises:
smaller state capital cities;
and that the experiences and opportunities in each of these different areas will be substantially different.
In considering the new tiered definition of regional, the Government should give thought to the effect of any definition of regional for peri-urban areas, many of which have the same characteristics as regional areas just a few kilometres away.
Recommendation 5: The Committee recommends that the Government continue to seek opportunities to increase the WHM upper age limit to 35 where bilateral negotiations can yield the same outcome for Australians.
Recommendation 6: The Committee recommends that the Government continue to seek opportunities to expand the WHM program through bilateral negotiations with new countries.
Recommendation 7: The Committee recommends that the Department of Home Affairs give consideration to providing workers who are undertaking work as part of their 3 months or 6 months with clearer guidance about what amount of work qualifies as a 'day'.
Recommendation 8: The Committee recommends that Working Holiday (subclass 417) and Work and Holiday (subclass 462) visa holders should be able to work for the same employer for more than 6 months in hard-to-staff rural and remote areas of Australia without asking permission in the following industries:
agriculture, forestry and fishing;
health care, disability care and aged care.
Recommendation 9: The Committee recommends that the Government instigate an advertising campaign to promote measures it has taken to encourage Australians and visa holders to undertake agricultural work to meet the shortages arising from the COVID-19 pandemic.
Recommendation 10: The Committee recommends that the Government undertake a tailored marketing campaign to promote the COVID-19 Pandemic event (408 subclass) visa to temporary visa holders in Australia.
Recommendation 11: The Committee recommends that the Government expedite the implementation of the recommendations of the Report of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce.
Recommendation 12: The Committee recommends that an app be developed for WHMs to augment the hotline recommended in the Interim Report.
Recommendation 13: The Committee recommends that the Fair Work Ombudsman develop an embassy liaison group to liaise on a regular basis about workplace issues raised with embassies by their citizens.
Recommendation 14: The Committee recommends that the Government consider additional concessions to SHEV and TPV holders who undertake at least one year of agricultural or horticultural work in a regional area, and are prepared to settle in a regional areas, such as:
subsidised Vocational education and training (VET) courses for skilled occupations experiencing chronic skills shortages (of at least 10 years); and
other incentives that assist Safe Haven Enterprise visa (SHEV) and Temporary Protection Visa (TPV) holders to meet requirements under a range of available visas, including the skilled migration scheme.
1.31
To date, there has not been a Government response to this report.