DIAC operations identify seven illegal workers in Perth

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Created on Monday, 19 December 2011 14:30

Written by Editorial staff

Following on from the recent spate of raids across the country, officers from the Department of Immigration and Citizenship (DIAC) have been involved in an operation in Western Australia that say seven illegal workers identified.

The project took place in the central business district of Perth, where the group were employed in the construction industry.

A departmental spokesman said that the six men and one woman had entered the country on temporary migration visas and had failed to leave before their explicitly stated date.

In addition, the individuals were found to have been employed illegally, as they did not have permission to do so even before their visas expired.

The spokesman took the opportunity to remind business owners of their duties to ensure that foreign nationals hired had the right to work in Australia before any agreement was made.

"It is the responsibility of employers to ensure that non-Australian workers they hire hold a visa with valid work rights," said the spokesman.

"Illegal workers in Australia will not be tolerated and the department actively investigates community reports and takes swift action to apprehend non-citizens without work rights."

The individuals were detained by officers and have been transferred to a detention facility pending their removal from the country.

Over the course of a month, DIAC operations have managed to identify more than 60 foreign nationals in Australia who were hired in breach of their visa conditions.

However there are many legal avenues that allow businesses to hire skilled international workers in order to build their knowledge base - or even supplement depleted labour pools in times of high demand.

The DIAC also makes available a number of services that allows employers to submit - with the individuals' consent - certain personal details of a migrant employee to a secure web portal in order to check their visa status and working rights.

Known as the Visa Entitlement Verification Online service, the free digital facility can process names, dates and passport numbers on short notice - meaning that business owners have little excuse for making hires without prior knowledge of an individual's employment rights.

If a firm is found to have hired a non-Australian in breach of their visa conditions, it can be fined up to $66 000 for each offence - while the manager responsible could face penalties of $13,200 and up to two year in prison.