"Organisations and Unions Across Australia Call for Whistleblower Protections for Migrant Workers", 28 February 2023

A national coalition of over 40 legal service providers, unions, ethnic community peak bodies, churches, and national organisations is calling on Minister for Home Affairs Clare O’Neil to urgently bring widespread migrant worker exploitation out of the shadows.

Led by the Migrant Justice Institute and Human Rights Law Centre, the Breaking the Silence proposal urges the Federal government to establish whistleblower protections that would enable migrant workers to report exploitation without risking their visa.

[...]

[...] The proposed reforms in Breaking the Silence include:

• A protection against visa cancellation for exploited migrant workers who take action against their employer and have breached their work conditions;
• A short-term visa to allow exploited migrant workers to remain in Australia and pursue a claim against their employers, with visa security and the ability to work.

[...]