Government’s backflip to hurt thousands of workers

Unions are warning that more than 14,000 workers will be worse off every year following the Albanese Government’s backflip on guaranteeing a weekly minimum of 30 paid hours for short-term workers on the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme.

The Federal Government has today announced it will dump its previously announced commitment, leaving workers to subsist on 120 hours over four weeks.

The absence of weekly minimum hours leaves vulnerable workers subject to exploitation in a scheme that has already seen concerns raised of modern slavery.

The averaging mechanism results in workers receiving insufficient work hours to cover their living costs, pay off their debts for accommodation and transport deducted by their employers, particularly at the start of their placement time in Australia.

The existing setting enables employers to provide low hours in the first three weeks of a month and top them up in the fourth week and still meet the technical requirements of the laws. PALM visa settings tie Pacific workers to their employer sponsor, making them effectively the only category of visa workers in Australia who are bound to their employer sponsor, with no ability to change employers or top up pay by working a second job

The lack of guaranteed weekly minimum hours is a driver of workers leaving the PALM program, as workers may leave their employer to seek alternative employment to support themselves in Australia. This leaves them in breach of their visa conditions and open to even greater exploitation by unscrupulous employers.

In 2023, the Government announced a staged implementation requiring Approved Employers to offer a minimum of 30 hours per week for short-term workers by 1 July 2024. After two “deferrals”, the Government has given in to pressure from employers and backflipped on the announced final implementation date of 1 April 2026.

Employers have opposed improvements to the minimum hours settings and have threatened to employ backpackers instead of PALM workers, as the Working Holiday Maker program lacks the protections of PALM.

Quotes attributable to ACTU President, Michele O’Neil:

“The Government’s failure to uphold its commitment to protect vulnerable PALM workers’ from exploitation by delivering minimum hours is a backwards step for workers’ rights in Australia.

“Employers can hold the PALM program to ransom by threatening to use backpackers instead of PALM workers every time changes are made to prevent exploitation. The Government must improve protections for both PALM workers and workers in the Working Holiday Maker program, to prevent exploitation and the undermining of PALM by employers.

“Australian Unions support PALM as an important program, enabling Pacific workers the opportunity to come to Australia and earn some money and develop new skills – but not at the expense of workers having the same rights as Australian workers. Workers’ rights should not be discounted for migrant workers. The Government must take extra steps to protect these vulnerable workers and ensure they are not exploited on this program.

“Unions urge the Government to reconsider its position and implement its promised 30 hours per week requirement so PALM workers can be treated fairly and afford the basics they need to survive.”