The introduction of a minimum wage increase for Pacific seasonal workers in Australia, is being welcomed by both Australian and Pacific Island union leaders.
Tonga Seasonal Workers Association Photo: Tonga seasonal workers association
Earlier this month, Australia's Fair Work Commission set the date for the new regulation, to take effect on 28 April. It requires all employers to pay an hourly minimum of $25.41 per piece.
The new regulation comes after years of pressure from union groups to better regulate the programme that has been tainted with controversy after complaints from Pacific workers of being underpaid and exploited.
Tonga Australia Seasonal Workers Association (TASWA) president Falepaini Maile told RNZ Pacific that Tongan seasonal workers looked forward to the payrise.
"The seasonal workers are very, very happy with the increase in the minimum piece rate per hour ... to have the fair work commission ombudsman clarify the payment and how it's going to be paid to the workers is a step forward in the right direction," Maile said.
"Workers are quite happy. When we put the article up on our Tonga Australia Seasonal Workers Association Facebook page, some of them commented and said why don't they start now, so they're desperate for when the increase will start."
Tonga Seasonal Worker Programme marred by Social Breakdowns
Maile said that Tongan seasonal workers in Australia, were facing challenges due to Covid-19 restrictions.
An ongoing border closure in Tonga since 2020 has forced workers to extend their work visas, with most having not returned home for the last two years. In 2021, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) estimated that there were about 5000 Tongan seasonal workers in the country.
The problem has been exacerbated by the 15 January volcanic and tsunami disaster in Tonga along with a recent Omicron outbreak.
"The lockdown in Tonga has not helped their situation. Most of them have been stuck here for over here for two years", said Maile.
"They've got stuck in lockdown in different states, and you know in Australia, different states have different regulations about border security. Those in Queensland, for example, have not been able to be mobile, to move to other states for work."
"There are so many challenges at different levels that the Tongan seasonal workers have been struggling with since Covid-19, and escalated since the tsunami in Tonga.
One of the noticeable problems affecting Tongan Seasonal Workers in Australia was the breakdown in relationships and family caused by isolation. Maile said that these were the negative effects of being stranded from home.
"Anxiety, loneliness and hopelessness, that they can't help their families in Tonga, especially now with the tsunami," Maile said.
"We see them turn to their own colleagues and workmates for emotional support and as a result, relationships have been built, leading to broken families and pregnancies, so there are a lot of unwanted social behaviours.
"There are so many pregnancies, we are getting reports from members of TASWA from different states, where female workers are pregnant, married individuals have developed relationships, families are broken. These are the unwanted side effects of where they're at and it's very, very sad," he said.
Maile said that seasonal workers who were without work were vulnerable, and had become dependent on friends and family in Australia.
"They resort now to support from their families and friends, living in garages, and often find work with scrupulous employers in the cementing and paving industry," Maile said.
"The picture is very dull and abysmal. There have been good stories of those who have managed to stay on and find work. That's what we all want."
Since its inception in 2008, Australia's Seasonal Workers Program has employed tens of thousands of Pacific Islander labourers on temporary work visas. It was established to address Australia's chronic shortage of orchard workers and farm hands.