AN AMNESTY to flush out illegal workers and end exploitation on Australian farms, proposed by Victoria’s fruit and vegetable farmers, has won initial support from unions.
The Weekly Times revealed last week the Victorian Farmers Federation horticulture group is calling for an amnesty to allow workers without a permit to be protected and to address a worker shortage on farms.
Australian Workers’ Union Victorian secretary Ben Davis said the proposal had “some merit”.
“It’s a long time since the AWU has agreed with the VFF,” Mr Davis said.
“I like the idea of self-disclosure in the short term … and would support an amnesty that protected workers.”
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VFF horticulture president Emma Germano proposed extending working visas for workers who came forward during the amnesty by up to three years.
But Mr Davis believed 12 months “is more appropriate,” and called for whistleblower protection for any workers who could provide information about illegal labour-hire contractors.
“Exploitation is far more widespread than we thought and a culture of silence and the culture of fear that goes with it is the problem,” Mr Davis said.
The Uniting Church’s social justice spokesman, Mark Zirnsak, agreed permanent whistleblower protection was required to address underlying problems with worker exploitation.
“I think it’s a great idea,” Mr Zirnsak said of the amnesty.
The National Union of Workers said many farmers wanted a “meaningful solution for undocumented workers” and it welcomed an amnesty designed to protect workers.
“The NUW supports the idea of an amnesty for the thousands of undocumented workers trapped in exploitative work arrangements in the fresh food farms that supply our major supermarkets,” NUW national president Caterina Cinanni said.
“As it stands, there are 1.2 million temporary migrant workers with work rights and thousands of others with no work rights doing the hardest jobs in this country for the smallest reward.”
Victorian Agriculture Minister Jaala Pulford commended farmers for raising the proposal.
“I welcome the acknowledgment by the VFF that there is a problem with the exploitation of vulnerable workers in the sector,” Ms Pulford said.
“A short-term amnesty sounds like a good idea, but there really needs to be a pathway to citizenship to give workers and farmers the certainty and security they deserve.”
A Federal Government spokeswoman said it was aware of the challenges farmers faced attracting workers and it took exploitation of workers seriously, having established a taskforce to target exploitation of foreign workers.
Source: The Weekly Times
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