There have been stories of "slave-labour" being used in American agriculture sector. There have been stories of migrant workers being used as slaves in the European agriculture sector (fruits & vegetables grown on Spanish & Portuguese farms were being sold in British supermarkets). Then, we also have stories of slaves working in Thai's fishing industry, which ultimately supplies seafood products all over North America & Europe. Now, we have "slave labour" on Australian farms.
Who says slavery is no more in this "modern" world?
Is it surprising that slavery still exists? (not to me, at least). Heck, that's why, immigration exists.
On one end, we have big supermarkets like WalMart, Costco, Aldi, Lidl etc which demand low-cost supplies of produce from their suppliers, because after all, they need to sell those at a low cost, too, to their customers (who are themselves are earning meagre wages, thanks to automation of their jobs).
Anyway, so, if the suppliers need to reduce their costs, then, after automating whatever processes they can automate, they will start hiring migrants & using them as "slave labour", which only means long hours of work at meagre wages with no benefits, whatsoever.
So, you can decide for yourself, where's the problem lies in this whole supply chain?
- Customers are always looking for the cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Retailers are looking for cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Distributors are looking for cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Producer is pressured to produce at as low a cost as possible.
Problem actually lies at the top; the business persons & owners of companies who are always looking to cut costs, & the biggest component of their costs, is always going to be their labour costs. It also includes all those shareholders / stockholders, esp. the large institutional ones, who pressure companies to lower their costs (to maximize their profits & ultimately, dividends to shareholders).
Companies have only one way to reduce labour costs, by automating whatever they can automate & reduce the workforce to as few a people as they can, to the point that the labour public has a choice to either accept working at meagre wages with no benefits or no job at all. So, that public will obviously go for the cheapest produce it can find in the supermarket, because, after all, that labour public needs to eat.
So, can we really blame the agriculture producer / farmer to hire migrant workers & use them like a "slave labour" when owners, like, Sam Walton's family (WalMart owners) are becoming billionaires?
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Allegations of unethical treatment & underpayment will be investigated by the state government of Victoria.
Victoria will also push for a national inquiry into what it has described as "a national shame".
Claims Australia has an underclass of foreign workers treated like "slave labour" were made by ABC TV ... .
The report by ABC's Four Corners programme detailed widespread abuses of Australia's 417 visa.
The visa is for people aged 18 to 30 years of age who want a working holiday of up to 12 months in Australia.
The investigation uncovered abuses of the popular visa, including what were described as "slave-like conditions" at farms & factories across Australia.
"No employee should ever be exploited, harassed or deprived of their basic liberties", said Victoria's Minister for Industrial Relations Natalie Hutchins.
"This is not just about the underpayment of wages; this is about creating an underclass of foreign workers," said Ms Hutchins in a statement.
Foreign underclass
"It's clear that Victoria needs a better system in place when it comes to regulating labour hire practices," she said.
The food being picked & processed by exploited workers was reportedly sold to consumers across the country by major supermarket chains & fast food outlets.
Queensland MP Keith Pitt last month called for an investigation of exploitation of foreign workers in the horticultural sector.
He said many farmers were at risk of prosecution because they were using labour hire companies that underpaid backpacker workers.
Migrant workers are essential to Australia's agriculture sector, according to the National Farmers' Federation (NFF).
"Without them, there would be a chronic labour shortage at peak harvest times of the year," said NFF President Brent Finlay.
But he said all farmers had a responsibility to adopt employment practices & use labour contractors that did not exploit workers.
"And it's not just farmers, this is a whole of supply chain issue," he said.
Who says slavery is no more in this "modern" world?
Is it surprising that slavery still exists? (not to me, at least). Heck, that's why, immigration exists.
On one end, we have big supermarkets like WalMart, Costco, Aldi, Lidl etc which demand low-cost supplies of produce from their suppliers, because after all, they need to sell those at a low cost, too, to their customers (who are themselves are earning meagre wages, thanks to automation of their jobs).
Anyway, so, if the suppliers need to reduce their costs, then, after automating whatever processes they can automate, they will start hiring migrants & using them as "slave labour", which only means long hours of work at meagre wages with no benefits, whatsoever.
So, you can decide for yourself, where's the problem lies in this whole supply chain?
- Customers are always looking for the cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Retailers are looking for cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Distributors are looking for cheapest produce they can get their hands on.
- Producer is pressured to produce at as low a cost as possible.
Problem actually lies at the top; the business persons & owners of companies who are always looking to cut costs, & the biggest component of their costs, is always going to be their labour costs. It also includes all those shareholders / stockholders, esp. the large institutional ones, who pressure companies to lower their costs (to maximize their profits & ultimately, dividends to shareholders).
Companies have only one way to reduce labour costs, by automating whatever they can automate & reduce the workforce to as few a people as they can, to the point that the labour public has a choice to either accept working at meagre wages with no benefits or no job at all. So, that public will obviously go for the cheapest produce it can find in the supermarket, because, after all, that labour public needs to eat.
So, can we really blame the agriculture producer / farmer to hire migrant workers & use them like a "slave labour" when owners, like, Sam Walton's family (WalMart owners) are becoming billionaires?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Allegations of unethical treatment & underpayment will be investigated by the state government of Victoria.
Victoria will also push for a national inquiry into what it has described as "a national shame".
Claims Australia has an underclass of foreign workers treated like "slave labour" were made by ABC TV ... .
The report by ABC's Four Corners programme detailed widespread abuses of Australia's 417 visa.
The visa is for people aged 18 to 30 years of age who want a working holiday of up to 12 months in Australia.
The investigation uncovered abuses of the popular visa, including what were described as "slave-like conditions" at farms & factories across Australia.
"No employee should ever be exploited, harassed or deprived of their basic liberties", said Victoria's Minister for Industrial Relations Natalie Hutchins.
"This is not just about the underpayment of wages; this is about creating an underclass of foreign workers," said Ms Hutchins in a statement.
Foreign underclass
"It's clear that Victoria needs a better system in place when it comes to regulating labour hire practices," she said.
The food being picked & processed by exploited workers was reportedly sold to consumers across the country by major supermarket chains & fast food outlets.
Queensland MP Keith Pitt last month called for an investigation of exploitation of foreign workers in the horticultural sector.
He said many farmers were at risk of prosecution because they were using labour hire companies that underpaid backpacker workers.
Migrant workers are essential to Australia's agriculture sector, according to the National Farmers' Federation (NFF).
"Without them, there would be a chronic labour shortage at peak harvest times of the year," said NFF President Brent Finlay.
But he said all farmers had a responsibility to adopt employment practices & use labour contractors that did not exploit workers.
"And it's not just farmers, this is a whole of supply chain issue," he said.
