'If there's breaches of employment laws and exploitation of workers, there can be serious implications,' says lawyer
Earlier in December, the federal government announced its Migration Strategy, which includes a new Skills in Demand visa for migrant workers.
This will be a four-year temporary worker visa designed to provide workers with more opportunities to switch employers, and give them clear pathways to permanent residence.
The visa will involve three key pathways:
- The Specialist Skills Pathway, allowing Australian employers to recruit highly-skilled specialists quickly and easily
- The Core Skills Pathway, designed to bring the skilled workers Australia needs today and in the future
- Essential skills Pathway, a highly-regulated pathway for lower paid workers that have essential skills
The new visa is for four years compared to the current Temporary Skill Shortage visa (subclass 482), which is a two- or four-year visa depending on the particular occupation list.
“It appears that there will be more flexibility on the employees – sponsored workers – side of things where they may be able to change employers more easily, which is not the case now,” said Zefy Souvlakis, partner at Ethos Migration Lawyers.
“And it also appears that there will be a pathway to permanent residency for them based on points that they will be able to get if they work for an Australian employer as a sponsored worker, which is not the case now. We don’t have additional points available in that sense presently.”
What new visa means for employers
Souvlakis said that with the new visa changes, it appears that it will be a bit easier for employers to sponsor workers.
“There is a focus on the particular salary that the workers will attract as well, which will in some situations determine the specific stream that [employers] might be able to sponsor under,” she said.
“Apart from that, it appears that it will be to an extent a bit more fair on employers, especially when it comes to the SAF levy, the Skilling Australian Fund, levy contribution that they are currently paying under the current TSS 482 visa. So instead of paying a one-off levy at the start of the sponsorship process, it is likely that the government will introduce now a weekly or monthly contribution that employers will have to pay if they're sponsoring staff.”
How can HR prepare for the changes
Souvlakis said employees that are currently in a TSS 482 visa are not likely to be affected by the changes.
“Which means that those that continue to work for their employers on the current TSS visa will likely be eligible to be sponsored for permanent residency regardless,” she said.
But employers should talk with their migration lawyers to ensure they have a clear understanding of what these changes are going to look like. That way, they are prepared when the laws are introduced, said Souvlakis.
“Maintaining communication with professionals that can provide ongoing advice and [can] prepare them for the anticipated changes, that's also quite important,” she said. “It will take a little while before these changes become law. So until then, it's business as usual.”
It’s also important for employers to ensure they are compliant with their sponsorship obligations and to potentially look at doing an audit or compliance review, Souvlakis added.
Reducing worker exploitation
The new visa is also designed to reduce the instance of migrant worker exploitation, and Souvlakis highlighted the implications for employers if such practices occur.
“If there's breaches of employment laws and exploitation of workers, there can be serious implications,” she said. “Not only… cancelling of sponsorship approvals or other bars on sponsorship for those employers, but also there can be sanctions and heavy fines that can be imposed.”
While the new Migration Strategy has been announced, a lot of different aspects of it are still in consideration, Souvlakis added.
“There will be a lot of stakeholder consultations and submissions from professional bodies nationally,” she said. “So the final version of the changes might be different to what has been introduced so far.”
But she emphasised how employers should remain aware and informed about the upcoming changes.
“Change is not necessarily something to be fearful of or intimidated by all these different things that they've announced,” she said. “We see it quite often in the immigration space over the years. I've witnessed many, many changes. It's mainly for employers especially to ensure that they are informed and that they maintain good understanding of their obligations and the different options that are available to them when it comes to sponsorship.”
