Business has migration agreement cancelled

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Created on Friday, 17 February 2012 18:08

Written by Editorial staff

A company in Victoria has had its right to hire skilled migrant workers in possession of the 457 visa subclass revoked in response to a range of findings.

This is the first time a commercial venture has ever had its migration agreement terminated by the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC).

According to the minister for immigration and citizenship, Chris Bowen, this decision was not taken lightly and was the result of a number of investigations into allegation of incorrect pay arrangements, casual work conditions and deliberately providing "false and misleading" information to the DIAC.

Bowen asserted: "The government will not tolerate abuse of the skilled migration program and this termination sends a strong message to companies that they should fulfil their obligations under their agreement.

"Companies found to be doing the wrong thing may be fined or suspended from using the program or, in serious cases such as this, their labour agreement may be terminated or court action taken."

As registered migration agents know, the value offered by hiring skilled migrant workers is balanced by a number of important legislative boundaries that serve to shape the conditions that must be present when hiring international staff.

Failing to meet these criteria or breaching the conditions of the agreement due to a lack of information is not acceptable as there are a number of channels available to businesses to gain access to the details they need to make an informed decision.

The minister continued to say that the federal government had always aimed to promote the integrity and reputation of the various visa programs and that any actions taken by business managers, or owners that broached these intentions, would be met with prohibitive penalties.

"Ongoing compliance action has resulted in an increase in the number of infringement notices served, with 31 notices from the department amounting to $165,000 in fines over the past financial year," said Bowen.

In this case, the skilled migrants affected have been granted time to seek employment with a new approved sponsor as they were not responsible for their current situation.

However it is understood that the DIAC may be looking to launch a civil prosecution against the business involved in the breaches of the skilled migration agreement.

Despite the landmark decision, Bowen noted that the majority of employers sponsoring 457 subclass holders tried hard deliver pay and conditions that complied with DIAC standards.