Moved by Councillor Davis, seconded by
Councillor Kok -
It is resolved that Council submit the
following motion for consideration at the next Local Government NSW (LGNSW)
Annual Conference:
(A)
Local
Government of NSW note:
(i)
the
Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) formerly known as Seasonal Workers
Program (SWP 2008) and Pacific Labour Scheme – (PLS 2012) allows businesses
across Australia (all states and territories, with exception of ACT) to hire
unskilled and semi-skilled workers from nine countries in the Pacific and
Timor-Leste;
(ii)
the
Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme is guided by a memorandum of
understanding between countries being a government-to-government program;
(iii)
it is
estimated that there are currently close to 39,000 seasonal worker nationals
across Australia (as of June 2023) with 11,000 of those from the Island State
of Vanuatu – the largest group from any nation;
(iv)
seasonal
workers are taxpayers aligned with other Australian citizens and an integral
part of our food system; they pick and process the fresh fruit and vegetables
and meat that is on our supermarket shelves and kitchen tables across the City
of Sydney and other council areas across NSW;
(v)
seasonal
workers are often employed by large recruitment firms namely Approved Employers
(AEs) who have responsibility for their well-being. Approved Employers rarely
have good cultural connections or understanding of local communities where
seasonal workers are placed;
(vi)
farmers
receiving the migrants or seasonal workers are challenged daily to provide the
necessary services that are required when integrating CALD communities into the
Australian workforce;
(vii)
the
Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat, Comprehensive Assessment of Regional and
Sub-Regional, Labour Mobility Arrangements in the Pacific from December 2022
showed that seasonal workers face numerous ongoing systematic problems since
inception of the program including:
(a)
unsafe
or inappropriate accommodation: seasonal workers are often housed in temporary
living conditions that are overcrowded and well below the ‘basic’ Australian
living standards. A lack of cost-effective transport between work and
accommodation;
(b)
a lack
of access to crucial services including health, dentistry, and mental health
services; culturally appropriate pastoral care and council services for
Culturally and Linguistically Diverse (CALD) communities;
(c)
failure
to comply with OHS (Occupational Health and Safety) regulations; and
(d)
lack of
assistance with personal finance management, wage theft, superannuation,
insurance, banking services and tax returns; and
(viii)
the
2022 review of the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility Scheme and the Employer
Guidelines updated in May 2023 require Approved Employers to have worker
welfare embedded into their systems and practices to create positive,
productive working environments:
(a)
the
review itself has not put a halt nor fixed issues and challenges that are
systemic such as exploitation of workers, wage theft, poor overcrowded
accommodation; and
(b)
workers
are charged exorbitant rates ($150-190 per bed per week), overcharged for
transportation, bullying and exploitation; and
(B)
Local
Government NSW is requested to write to the Hon Tony Burke, Minister for
Employment and Workplace Relations asking the Commonwealth Government to:
(i)
work
with approved employers to provide relevant councils with information about the
number of seasonal workers expected and their countries of origin so councils
can understand their cultural needs, prepare the community for their arrival,
and consider and plan for their needs as part of their Local Emergency
Management Plans;
(ii)
increase
the frequency of check-ins by the Australian Government particularly to ensure
living conditions meet the requirements outlined in the PALM Scheme Approved
Employer Guidelines; and
(iii)
provide
direct funding to councils to establish dedicated local service hubs to provide
seasonal workers with targeted programs, including by:
(a)
connecting
seasonal workers with First Nations or traditional owners and other cultural
authorities of the area;
(b)
providing
culturally appropriate and non-biased Pastoral care through Australian South
Sea Islander (ASSI), Aboriginal, Torres Strait Islander, Pacific and Culturally
and Linguistically Diverse and Culturally and Racially Marginalised (CARM)
community organisations that demonstrate a deep knowledge of culture and the
seasonal worker program and its people;
(c)
developing
pathways and support outreach programs that connect seasonal workers to
organisations that centre on the needs of migrants to assist workers to access
culturally sensitive assistance to access relevant information, health and
mental health; and
(d)
working
closely with law enforcement authorities in respective councils to educate
seasonal workers about law and order and council regulations.
Carried unanimously.
X086660