SLAVE LABOUR FOR GREEDY BOSSES

Under the Keating Labor Government a special class of visa was created to let high paid overseas executives in to do short term jobs. Under Howard this become a slave labour force of workers who still cannot complain.

The type of visa, called 457 visas, was then expanded to include every type of worker under Howard and used to bring in workers from the third world to do production and trades jobs at bargain rates. In one year alone Howard brought in over 70,000 of these workers with no rights.

Resisting slave labour in our industries

The FFTS is opposed to the exploitation of guest overseas workers and to date we have been able to keep this ‘slave labour’ out of our industries in Victoria. We strongly believe that Australia has developed well over 200 years as a free society on migrant labour with full working rights. But the 457 visa workers are a slave labour force because they can be deported if they complain or even ask to join the union. We have now become aware of a profit-hungry company that wants to push 457 visas in the furniture industry in Victoria.

Federal Labor now backs expanding 457 visa scam

The Federal Labor party is responding to demands from its big business supporters and is about to expand the 457 Visa category to over 140,000 workers. This is not what is needed. We do not need a slave labor workforce of temporary guest workers, often with little English to find out about their rights as workers.

If we all want to live in a society where we get decent wages and conditions then we need to ensure these workers have full work rights from the day they step in the country. These 457 visa workers should all be given the option of citizenship by the government then their employers could not use the threat of deportation to rob these workers of wages and basic union rights. Under the current rotten system if a temporary workers is sacked their visa lapses and if they stay on they could face detention or deportation. If they are deported or detained they get charged costs by the government. So workers are coming here - getting ripped off by bosses and if they quit they can be sent back to their third world village with a debt.

457 VISA slave labour now threat to furniture industry

The sharks pushing this trade in ‘zero rights’ workers are employment agents who get a cut for landing cheaper workers who can’t complain to greedy bosses. We now have one low life pushing this scheme in Victorian furniture industry. The furniture industry bosses peak bodies should nip this in the bud. How can our local industry claim it is a quality industry if it uses slave Labor?

The union is considering running a public exposure campaign to name and shame any brand, retail outlet or employer in the furniture industry who uses slave labour. We have also heard reports that some in the flooring industry are also thinking about sourceing labour from the 457 visa scheme.

Keep the FAIR GO alive and stamp out slave labor

Australia was been built on the backs of migrants from England, Ireland, Italy, Greece, Turkey, Lebanon and many other countries but until now we gave those workers a chance with full union rights and a chance to settle and raise families.

To keep a FAIR GO alive in our industries we need to give these workers union protection with full union conditions. We need the Rudd government to remember the real Labor tradition and give these workers full rights as workers and the option of citizenship. If they can’t extend full rights to these workers then they should scrap the whole program.