The Passport To Misery
Sydney Morning Herald
Monday October 22, 2007
The plot might have been devised by Kafka, or by Joseph Heller, author of Catch-22. Eighteen Chinese Mongolians face deportation, and financial disaster, because their Queensland employer has been found in breach of the conditions of the 457 visa scheme for skilled workers under which they were brought to this country. The far from draconian penalty imposed by the Immigration Department on the firm, N.K. Collins, of Toowoomba, is a ban on its using the 457 scheme for three years. The implications for the hapless workers are graver. They say they have been told that, because the firm is no longer an approved sponsor, they have seven days to show why they should be allowed to stay in Australia. They also claim that, having borrowed up to $20,000 each to come here, they are still owed large sums by the firm.
This is one of several cases reported by the Herald of human tragedies arising out of apparent abuse of the 457 visa scheme. Introduced in 1994, it was originally intended to facilitate entry, for up to four years, of corporate executives, professionals and skilled experts. In the first eight years, only a few thousand such visas were granted but, more recently, the number on issue has blown out to more than 100,000. Due to various factors - labour shortages in a booming economy, ruthless exploitation by some agents and employers, inadequate departmental monitoring and enforcement of seemingly strict regulations - the scheme is no longer limited to elite employees. It is a de facto cheap indentured labour scheme.The Herald has learnt of cases of unqualified, non-English-speaking 457 visa-holders being used for dangerous work, shockingly underpaid and poorly housed, denied their overtime pay and superannuation entitlements and having their earnings withheld. If they complain, they risk being sacked and therefore having their visas cancelled unless they can quickly find a new sponsor. If they return home, they will be crippled by debts they have no prospect of repaying.Clearly the 18 Chinese Mongolians should be allowed to remain here while they pursue legal redress. Beyond that, whichever party wins this federal election must urgently review the 457 scheme. Amendments introduced in the last parliament - employer groups complained they were draconian - never did become law. The review should cover tougher visa criteria, fair sharing of relocation costs, and more effective departmental supervision.
© 2007 Sydney Morning Herald
