Australian government are discussing whether to grant amnesty to illegal workers (ABC)
According to the Australian Broadcasting Corporation, Australian government may grant amnesty to illegal workers so that they do not worry about deportation and can stand up to fill Australia's labor gap. The agricultural minister, Little Proud (David LittleProde), said government might decide on the idea in the coming weeks.
As a potential measure to help Australian farms cope with the shortage of workers, the Australian government has discussed whether to grant amnesty to foreigners who do not have a work visa, Mr.
"(The discussion) has been going on, in fact, immigration minister 、 internal affairs minister 、 myself, and even the labour minister have been trying to solve these problems, which takes some time to make sure we get the right information ," he said. "
For the first time in 2017, the Victorian Farmers union called for an amnesty for illegal workers in the horticulture industry and acknowledged the industry's illegal labor problems. Then, in july, a few months after australia closed its borders, virginia agricultural minister Jaclyn Symes asked the federal government to consider amnesty before the coming harvest season. And Western Australia agriculture director McTirnan (Alannah MacTiernan) also supports this idea.
Mr amnesty is a complex concept that can not be rushed, says mr leitel praud.
"All states need to calm down and understand that we have to think globally, and that we need to know that before we make any decision ," Little Proud said. We will consider the issue of safety, but we will also look at the issue from the perspective of labor, in addition, we will also try to solve the problem of labor exploitation in Australia. "
Mr Littleproud says he doesn't see Australian agriculture as an illegal labor-intensive industry.
"I don't think we should generalize about the existence of large-scale labour exploitation across Australia. I think it's a dangerous thing... Yes, there are people in Australian agriculture doing this wrong thing, but this is true in any industry, not just in agriculture ," he said. "
Virginia farmers union vice chairman jelmano (Emma Germano) said australia should have long granted an amnesty for illegal workers, but he is not sure how far the amnesty will address the shortage of 26000 workers in the coming harvest season.
"It's very commercial, because after the amnesty, these people will no longer work illegally, and they will start paying taxes, which is very humanitarian ," Germano said. The amnesty could draw a workforce without visas to the industry. "
Germano said the amnesty would help labor mobility in Australia, which is now affected by the closure of borders in several states. She also questioned the perception of these persons as security risks.
"It is foolish to say that these people will become national security issues because they are already in this country ," she said. "
