Proposed new law aims to protect migrant workers; not too late to have your say
The Government introduced the Worker Protection (Migrant and Other Employees) Bill (the Bill) into Parliament at the end of September.
The aim of the Bill is to deter employers from exploiting migrant workers. As currently drafted it introduces a number of new infringement offences for non-compliance and proposes a public register of individuals and businesses who have breached the standards.
The Bill is now at Select Committee stage and submissions are currently open.
Requirement to share employment records on request
Employers who support visa applications make commitments about the pay and conditions of the worker.
Under the Bill, Immigration officers will be able to request relevant employment records such as wages and time records, leave records, employment agreements, bank statements and financial statements that are relevant to the supported employee. The Immigration Officer will be permitted to share this information with the relevant regulator if they feel an employer has breached employment standards (or committed a criminal offence).
New Immigration offences
The Bill sets out three new immigration infringement offences; namely, when an employer:
- allows a person who is not entitled under the Immigration Act 2009 to work in the employer’s service
- does not employ a person in accordance with a work-related condition of that person’s visa, or
- fails to provide documents requested by an Immigration Officer within a reasonable time frame (10 working days).
Disqualification from managing or directing a company
Under the Bill, any person convicted of migrant exploitation or people trafficking under the Immigration Act 2009 or the Crimes Act 1961 cannot be directors, promoters or managers of any company, when their offending was enabled by or related to the use of a company.
Submissions on the Bill are open until 1 December 2022 if you wish to have your say.
How can we help?
If you need assistance reviewing your employment agreements, advice about health and safety risk assessments or any other employment matter, our experienced specialist employment law team will be happy to help. You can view our Employment Law team here.
WRMK Lawyers takes all reasonable care to make sure that the information in this article is up-to-date and accurate at today’s date. It is necessarily general information and not intended as legal advice to be relied upon.
Our thanks to Kezia Purdie for writing this article.
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We will then provide you with a written report outlining your organisation’s level of compliance and what is required to bring you up to speed, all for a very cost-effective fixed fee.
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