REGULATORY REPORT
Submission on Migrant Worker Exploitation
Christine Pope | Director , Australian Traditional Medicine Society
ATMS , through its membership of the Council of Small Business Organisations Australia ( COSBOA ) was invited to participate in an Industry Roundtable with the Department of Home Affairs in regard to the current enquiry into migrant worker exploitation . This area has been a focus for the ATMS Board as , through COVID , audits and compliance directed at reducing exploitation have been delayed or deferred . Confusion also exists between the legitimate remedial massage sector and “ massage parlours ” which are in reality often sex-on-premises venues . This exposes our practitioners to harassment and also has the ability to bring our industry into disrepute .
ATMS recently completed a detailed survey of the current natural therapies workforce , the 2022 National Natural Therapies Workforce Survey . This highlighted the fact that 80.1 % of practitioners identify as female and the majority work part-time with average incomes of less than $ 50,000 p . a . A total of 59 % of these therapists are sole traders and a further 25 % are employed in group practices .
ATMS is concerned about factors which expose its predominantly female workforce to increased risk of harassment or exploitation . These factors currently include ;
• The use of student or temporary visas by women seeking to work in Australia and who are then unwittingly exposed to the risk of exploitation in the sex-onpremises industry .
• The employment of migrants in the massage shops , housed predominantly in shopping centres , which do not meet industry standards . Anecdotally many of these workers are unaware of the pay and conditions that are relevant in Australia and do not hold qualifications which are capable of being recognised in Australia .
• Education Providers that ‘ enrol ’ students who then do not attend the course or do not complete appropriate qualifications for industry accreditation .
The issues surrounding migrant worker exploitation arise due to the complex interaction of the migration , education and criminal legislation . A 2004 report by the Australian Institute of Family Studies , Project Respect , reviewed the evidence on sexual exploitation and identified several risk factors : 1 . Women on Thai passports ( although they may have different nationalities ) 2 . Women who had no local contacts or friends 3 . Women who were unable to access resources in their own language 4 . A fear of authorities and fear of being deported 5 . Belief that they were being employed in legitimate roles
The current system provides up to 45 days of additional protection and access to services for victims with the capacity of extending the term for a further 45 days if they assist with a criminal prosecution . This short extension is not providing adequate support to victims and does not appear to provide adequate time to run a criminal case . This is clear from the few cases that have actually been successfully prosecuted in the past few years . ATMS has recommended in its submission that consideration should be given to extending the visas for a reasonable period of time to deal with the trauma and assist people to recover so that they have the ability to assist in a prosecution .
A concern raised was the potential for visa extensions for victims to be abused as another way of migrating to Australia . Given the very low numbers indicated in international reports ( up to 1,000 ) it does not seem to be sufficiently concerning as a way to access permanent migration to Australia .
ATMS in its submission recommended that all stages of the visa process , in relation to student and temporary migration , provide information on trafficking and the risks in the worker ’ s language as part of the process . It was also flagged that it may be appropriate to include procedures for indicating concern about safety to border police , so that potential victims can be identified at the port of entry .
As evidenced by the 2021 report on Trafficking in Persons ( US Secretary of State ), it was highlighted that visa screening for Australia is weak for student and temporary visas . This highlights a need to improve the processes to ensure that students are seeking legitimate study opportunities and not a back door to work in Australia . Further , this also highlights that strengthening these processes would minimise the risk of trafficking .
ATMS also noted the two levels of audit currently existing in the VET sector by ASQA in regard to compliance . It has recommended that education providers who provide feefor-service courses may need to be audited in the same way as government funded courses to ensure an adequate focus on compliance . Ideally , the auditor from ASQA would be accompanied by an industry representative who can verify that the training , equipment and processes are appropriate .
ATMS will continue to keep members advised of the progress of this enquiry .
REFERENCES
1 . Project Respect . One victim of trafficking is one too many : Counting the human cost of trafficking . Fitzroy : Project Respect Inc , 2004 . [ cited 2023 Jan 15 ]. Available from : https :// d3n8a8pro7vhmx . cloudfront . net / projectrespect / pages / 15 / attachments / original / 1438312547 / PR _ OneVictim _ documentation _ 2004 . pdf ? 1438312547
2 . U . S . Department of State . 2021 Trafficking in Persons Report . [ cited 2023 Feb 10 ], 2022 . Available from : https :// www . state . gov / reports / 2021-trafficking-in-persons-report /
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