The Ministerial Advisory Council on Skilled Migration (MACSM) met in Melbourne today to discuss the Government’s upcoming package of reforms to tackle migrant worker exploitation.
During today’s meeting, Minister Giles updated the council on recent budget announcements and the ongoing work of the Government’s migration strategy. Council members engaged in a substantiative discussion on upcoming co-design processes to deliver the Government’s commitments on tackling the exploitation of workers who hold a temporary visa.
This commitment comes following the MACSM’s last meeting in February, where attendees engaged in a productive and open discussion on potential approaches to tackling migrant worker exploitation and measures to address recommendations made by the Migrant Workers’ Taskforce and work first announced at the Jobs and Skills summit.
Today’s meeting also marks the final meeting of the council in its current form. The Minister thanked members for their contributions over the last 12 months, which have informed the Government’s efforts to deliver on its commitment to reduce the visa backlog and address skills and labour shortages.
In stark contrast with the former Liberal Ministers who failed to engage with this council, the Government has fulfilled obligations set out in the Migration Act for MACSM to meet quarterly- once again demonstrating the Government’s strong commitment to restoring the migration system as a nation-building function of government.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs, Andrew Giles
“No worker should feel unsafe at work- and no one should feel unable to speak up because of their visa status.
“Today’s meeting between Government, industry and unions demonstrates the Albanese Government’s strong commitment to tackling the exploitation of some of our most vulnerable workers.
“For almost 10 years the former Liberal Government neglected the safety of migrant workers. Through this tripartite process, the Government is turning the page on a wasted decade and getting on with the job in a way that unites rather than divides us.”
