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Federal Labor Party delegates will on Saturday vote on a pledge to replace the 40-hour a fortnight work restriction for international students with tough requirements for course attendance and course completion.
The Unions NSW resolution, if adopted, would commit Labor to creating a "firewall" between the Fair Work Ombudsman and Department of Home Affairs to prohibit sharing of personal data that could put the visa status of exploited workers at risk.
It also calls for the removal of an 88-day regional work placement requirement for working holiday visa holders which it says has been a "key driver of exploitation and underpayment".
Community legal centres have reported that many migrant workers are required to work more than 40 hours and are reluctant to complain about underpayment over fear of losing their work visas.
The Sydney Morning Herald and The Age has widely reported on the rampant underpayment of workers including international students by outlets including 7-Eleven and Domino's.
Unions NSW audited 150 foreign jobs advertised in Spanish, Korean, Nepalese, Chinese, and Punjabi and found seven out of 10 positions are offered at pay rates below the legal award minimum.
The findings prompted NSW trade unions to attempt to amend the ALP platform on immigration and workplace laws at the Party’s national conference in Adelaide on Saturday.
Unions NSW secretary, Mark MoreyCredit:Wolter Peeters
Unions NSW Secretary Mark Morey said the findings should prompt federal Labor to clean up the unhealthy interaction between workplace and immigration law.
“Our system of contingent visas prevent some migrant workers enforcing the same labour rights as the rest of us," Mr Morey said.
“This has to change and it’s something only a Labor government can tackle. We need a deportation amnesty for people who report wage theft. We also need a firewall erected between the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Department of Immigration. That will send a powerful signal that complaining about exploitation won’t result in having your visa cancelled."
The Fair Work Ombudsman has offered amnesty to temporary foreign workers, but freedom of information (FOI) documents suggest the Ombudsman has an informal non-binding agreement with the Department of Home Affairs.
“Our FOI has shown the agreement between the Fair Work Ombudsman and the Immigration Department can not be enforced. Migrant workers need an iron clad guarantee that when they report wage theft, they won’t get deported,” he said.
The Fair Work Ombudsman declined to comment.
Anna Patty is Workplace Editor for The Sydney Morning Herald. She is a former Education Editor, State Political Reporter and Health Reporter. Her reports on inequity in schools funding led to the Gonski reforms and won her national awards. Her coverage of health exposed unnecessary patient deaths at Campbelltown Hospital and led to judicial and parliamentary inquiries. At The Times of London, she exposed flaws in international medical trials.