Archived Industrial News: October 2006

Temporary visas – not the answer

While talk of skills shortages has been in the media for some time, the real problems with the Government’s reliance on temporary work visas are only just emerging.

It is estimated that 40,000 section 457 temporary work visa approvals were processed in the 2005/2006 financial year representing an increase of 42% on 2004/2005 figures and a 66% increase from 2003/2004.

The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has consistently stated that government and employers have failed to promote and maintain effective training and skills development in Australia to ensure sufficient numbers of suitably trained and qualified workers into the future.

The ANF has long argued the number of funded places for undergraduate nursing courses is grossly insufficient to meet the immediate and future needs of the health workforce. The international nursing workforce shortages, reinforces the argument that reliance on the temporary work visa system is short sighted and at best a temporary solution.

Concerns have also been raised that temporary visas are being misused by the Federal Government and unscrupulous employers to provide a source of cheap labour to suppress wages and conditions and undermine the ability of workers and their unions to pursue better wages and conditions.

A report by the Australian Manufacturing Workers Union (AMWU 2006) reveals there is no clear linkage between general employment growth at an industry level and the growth in s457 visas. In fact, there has been minimal employment growth in some of the areas experiencing the highest number of visa approvals. In some instances, such as manufacturing and education, large increases in s457 entries have been matched by a fall in employment levels in those industries.

Under the current arrangements for processing approvals, employers are not required to undertake labour market testing or attempt to fill the vacancy locally. Nor are there any mechanisms to prevent an employer who has implemented redundancies from bringing in overseas workers to do the same work.

ANF branch officials recently assisted a group of nurses who were recruited under s457 visas by a nursing agency. These nurses were placed on a ‘training wage’ based on 70% of the award rate, worked up to 50 hours a week without overtime, were paid no allowances and denied any entitlement to personal and annual leave. The branch resolved the matter with back pay to the individuals concerned. However, not all the nurses sought assistance; some were too frightened to raise issues in this instance.

These and other legitimate concerns about the use of the s457 visa system must be addressed by the Federal Government to ensure that the system is not being abused by employers; not threatening or undermining training and job opportunities in Australia and not exploiting workers from overseas who are placed in a very vulnerable position.

References

Temporary and skilled migration: a new form of indentured servitude. 2006. Australian Manufacturing Workers Union. This document can be accessed on the web at http://www.amwu.asn.au/images/skilledmigration-0706.pdf

Nick Blake
ANF Federal Industrial Officer