Why Australia must investigate seasonal worker conditions in agriculture | A NewsMail campaign

A series of exclusive articles by The Bundaberg NewsMail has shone a spotlight on the exploitation of vulnerable farm workers, especially Pacific Islanders, in the Bundaberg region. But this issue is a national disgrace, and needs a national investigation.

With the promise of warmer temperatures, abundant work opportunities and pristine beaches, it’s no wonder more than 200,000 backpackers from across the world and 6000 seasonal workers from the Pacific and Timor-Leste flock to Australia every year to work on our farms.

The Bundaberg region has been called “the food bowl of Australia”, and it sits at the southern tip of the Southern Great Barrier Reef with red, rich volcanic soils providing an abundance of agricultural opportunity.

A series of exclusive articles by The Bundaberg NewsMail has shone a spotlight on the exploitation of vulnerable farm workers, especially Pacific Islanders, in the Bundaberg region. But this issue is a national disgrace, and needs a national investigation.

In June 2022, seasonal workers approached the Bundaberg NewsMail, providing testimonies of their experiences on local farms.

French backpacker Valentin Egger told the NewsMail he had suffered pay discrepancies while working for a Bundaberg strawberry farm in 2020 which left him homeless and penniless, until Bargara businesswoman Amanda Slade took him in for free.

Pacific Islander workers are desperately calling on the Australian Government to help them.

He also claimed Bundaberg had a poor reputation within the Australian backpacker community.

A month later, Ms Slade unearthed evidence South Sea Islander farm workers were allegedly being exploited by a labor hire contractor.

Workers staying at her accommodation asked her for help after they believed they were receiving less pay than they were promised.

When the workers provided Ms Slade with their payslips, she uncovered authorised deductions being taken from their pays.

After discovering the issue, the Pacific Islander workers said they were desperately seeking help from the Australian Government and told heartbreaking stories about their treatment on Bundaberg farms, including one man who said he was forced by a farmer to get an Australian marriage certificate before he and his wife were allowed to sleep in the same room.

In August 2022, the Australian Workers Union demanded the National Farmers Federation “urgently clarify” its proposal to provide “non-monetary” benefits to farm workers.

The NFF said the proposal was not a food-for-labour initiative, but instead hoped to include non-monetary benefits, such as food in workplace pay deals on top of wages.

News Corps’ Wide Bay news brands, The Bundaberg NewsMail, The Gympie Times and The Fraser Coast Chronicle, today launch their campaign to lift the rug on the exploitation of vulnerable farm workers, stop that exploitation from occurring and push the Federal Government to consider a Royal Commission into farming practices and employment across the country.

At the NewsMail, we pride ourselves on championing the underdog and demanding a fair go for everyone living and working in this great nation.

Ripping people off and ruining their lives is - to say the least - unAustralian, and it behooves all of us to stop it from happening.

Bargara businesswoman and human rights advocate Amanda Slade uncovered evidence of exploitation of Pacific Islander farm workers, paying $30,000 from her own pocket to keep them off the streets after they were unable to pay for accommodation.

We believe the Australian Government must hold a royal commission into seasonal worker exploitation in Australia.

The end goal is for our e-petition to land on the desks of the Prime Minister and federal government representatives to help make this royal commission a reality.

Sign the change.org petition HERE