Backpackers documentary reveals the dark side of working on an Australian farm. (photo by Australian News Network)
A British filmmaker with vacationing experience in Australia has filmed a backpacker documentary revealing the dark side of farm vacation in Australia, where sexual harassment is prevalent, backpackers live and work in poor conditions, and even die.
The documentary's director, Stona (Katherine Stoner), also experienced sexual harassment while working on holiday in Australia, Australian News Network reported. To uncover the inhumane treatment of some backpackers, Stona made a large number of covert interviews.
She told reporters that while working on a farm in Australia at the age of 18, she was beaten with garlic and even touched her ass by another farm worker, and later discovered that many backpackers suffered the same experience as themselves. So it was decided to shoot a documentary to uncover the problem.
"as far as we know, a lot of backpackers have had similar experiences-racial discrimination or verbal abuse by farmers, and I've even heard of cases where backpackers have been beaten by farmers," Stona said.
In the film, 88 days (88 Days), interviewed backpackers said sexual harassment from managers and bosses had become commonplace on some farms.
A British backpacker working in (Mildura) Mildura, Victoria, recounts that the girl who worked with herself had been sexually harassed by male workers for wearing tight pants. After several people complained to farmers, the latter said they would not allow "any male employee who said something to be punished."
The film also exposed some harsh conditions for farm workers' dormitories, such as no drinking water and mice running around the house.
The mother of Mia Ayliffe-Chung,21, a Chinese-British backpacker who was killed in her sleep in 2016, also spoke in the film, saying she was shocked by the accommodation offered by Australian farms for backpackers. And calls for relevant parties to improve this.
In 2017, the death toll among agricultural, forestry and fishery workers increased by 18 percent compared with 2016, according to an analysis of worker casualty data from (Safe Work Australia), the Australian job security agency, by Finder, an Australian service comparison website. Even more worrisome is the fact that 16 out of every 100000 workers in the agricultural sector die, more than twice as many as others.
"We don't think these are unfortunate accidents," said Rolstow (Shane Roulstone) of the Australian Workers Union (AWU). "We believe these are totally avoidable unnecessary casualties." He noted that while most of Australia's farmers are good people, a small number are still exploiting backpackers unscrupulously and calling on the government to take steps to improve the problem.