Natalie James
March 6, 2017
The Fair Work Ombudsman is urging horticulture businesses to be vigilant when engaging workers from labour-hire companies.
“I want to remind business operators who employ backpackers that they should be wary of ‘offers’ of labour from labour-hire providers who turn up at their properties offering to supply workers,” Fair Work Ombudsman Natalie James said.
“Workers that are engaged on piece rates must be provided with a piecework agreement in writing that is set at a rate that would allow an average competent worker to pick enough to earn 15 per cent above the hourly minimum.”
Ms James said she recognised the importance of piece rate arrangements to the horticulture sector but some dodgy labour-hire operators set piece rates so low that it was not possible for workers to pick or pack enough fruit to earn the minimum hourly rate.
“As one can reasonably assume the labour hire provider is taking a cut of the agreement with the grower, the question growers need to ask is ‘how much are the workers receiving?’,” she said.
Ms James encouraged business operators to contact her office if they received offers of labour at suspiciously low rates.
She said the deliberate exploitation of young, vulnerable backpackers – many of them from non-English speaking backgrounds with little understanding of their workplace rights – was totally unacceptable.
“Growers should ensure that people working on their farms, whether directly employed or via a labour-hire provider, are receiving their correct entitlements,” Ms James said.
“Growers and hostel operators who enter into contracts with unscrupulous labour-hire companies can be held liable as an accessory under the Fair Work Act if they knowingly enter into sub-standard and illegal arrangements.”
Ms James said the majority of growers do the right thing, although her office had found recurring trends when it came to overseas worker exploitation.
New arrivals to Australia can find themselves being ripped-off on transport or accommodation costs after entering into dodgy arrangements with unscrupulous labour-hire providers.
It was also not uncommon for some backpackers to be met by the labour hire provider at a regional airport or bus station and promised work, accommodation and transport. They were then driven to accommodation via an ATM and asked to provide money in advance for bond, transport and accommodation costs.
However, the most common issue encountered by the Fair Work Ombudsman was in relation to rates of pay or piece work agreements.
“If growers are approached by a labour-hire provider with rates that seem to be too good to be true, they probably are,” Ms James said.
