The vulnerable workers bearing the cost of providing Australia with cheap food
Behind the fruit and vegetables on Australia's supermarket shelves are workers whose stories are rarely heard.
Gershom Isaac, a migrant worker from Papua New Guinea, spends up to 12 hours a day harvesting fruit in Australia, often earning less than $7 an hour. He lives in overcrowded, squalid accommodation and feels trapped by a system controlled by labour hire contractors. These contractors dictate his work, pay, and future, leaving him feeling suicidal.
Across Australia's horticulture industry, similar experiences are shared by many workers, with low pay, poor housing, and little power to complain. This exploitation is part of a larger issue in Australia's growing reliance on temporary migrant labour, which has fueled a booming labour hire industry. While some contractors operate legally, others prey on vulnerable workers, paying them cash well below the minimum wage.
Four Corners' eight-month investigation revealed issues of worker exploitation, labour fraud, and even child labour in various industries. Despite Australia's modern slavery laws, there is no import ban on products made with forced labour. The investigation also found that the PALM scheme, designed to help Pacific Islanders find work in Australia, can leave workers even more vulnerable if they disengage from it.
Workers like Gershom, Timothy, and Viona speak of their struggles, highlighting the dire conditions they face in Australia's food industry.
Written by urgent.news from ABC News AU's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.