Australian Immigration Daily News

Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker said taking action to improve compliance in the agriculture sector and protect vulnerable workers were top priorities for the FWO.

“This sector engages many vulnerable workers, such as visa holders, who may be unaware of their rights or unwilling to speak up. Employers who fail to deliver all their employees’ entitlements – including due to unlawful deductions – will be found out and risk facing penalties,” Ms Parker said.

“Any employees with concerns about their pay or entitlements should contact the Fair Work Ombudsman for free advice and assistance.”

 Source: Qld-Labour-hire-company-faces-court-for-alleged-underpayment-of-87-visa-holders.pdf

Below is a fact sheet on the Ministerial Direction to update the priority processing arrangements for skilled visas.

The new Ministerial Direction simplifies the visa process and will deliver more efficient visa processing for the benefit of skilled applicants and their sponsors across industries, allowing the Department of Home Affairs to process more skilled applications faster and respond quickly to labour market needs.

This change will also help small businesses seeking to recruit overseas workers. It speeds up processing for all occupations and makes the process less complicated.

Comments attributable to Minister for Home Affairs Clare O'Neil and Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs Andrew Giles:

"This morning, we convened an urgent meeting of the heads of the Australian Border Force, Home Affairs, and the Australian Federal Police.

The government’s immediate response will focus on the individual elements of the conduct under investigation.

The Albanese Government has no tolerance for the exploitation of migrants. Work is already being progressed on a package of reforms to address migrant worker exploitation following the Jobs and Skills Summit.

The serious problems raised by these reports are a reflection of nine years of neglect of our visa system by the previous government."

Source: Human-Trafficking-31-Oct-2022.pdf

At all times the focus has been the safety and security of all Australians as well as the safety of those involved in the operation. Informed by national security advice, the Government has carefully considered the range of security, community and welfare factors in making the decision to repatriate.

The decision to repatriate these women and their children was informed by individual assessments following detailed work by national security agencies.

Source: Clare-ONeil-press-release-29-Oct-2022.pdfClare-ONeil-press-release-29-Oct-2022.pdf

Minister for Home Affairs, Clare O’Neil said after biosecurity officers found the items, the traveller was referred to Australian Border Force (ABF) officers, who cancelled their visa.

“This is why legislation is in place to cancel the visa of any traveller who commits a significant biosecurity breach or repeatedly contravenes biosecurity laws,” Minister O’Neil said.

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry Murray Watt said last month the Government introduced tougher laws to ban meat items for personal use from countries with foot and mouth disease.

Source: Biosecurity-breach-prompts-immediate-visa-cancellation.pdf