On
the one hand Australia has agreed not to apply Labour Market Testing under the
Korea FTA. But Korea has reserved the right to request employers for evidence
that they have conducted labor market testing. In particular, the provision
states: ‘Labour market testing may be required as a condition for temporary
entry of, or numerical restriction may be imposed relating to, temporary entry
for professionals’.
Free
trade has turned into a euphemism for accommodating the agendas of
transnational corporations, in this case of the Korea FTA, an increased use of
457 Temporary Migrant Workers.
Already,
Gina Rinehart’s Roy Hill is using up to 200 white-collar 457visa workers, half
of which are Korean nationals, and many of whom are women, clocking up 84 hours
a week. Many are not working in the occupations approved for their visas – a
breach of the sponsoring employer’s obligations, and this despite Roy Hill
claiming it was so inundated with job applications from locals that it did not
need to use 457 visas. The ‘free movement of labour’ on the free trade agenda
of corporations is nothing more than a vehicle to race to the bottom on local wages
and conditions.
The
secrecy under which these agreements are being negotiated and then signed
undermines democracy and comes at the expense of local health, labour and
environmental laws.
At
a time when over 713,000 Australians are unemployed and we have a crisis in
youth unemployment the Liberal Government should be looking for and supporting
local solutions, not exacerbating this problem by opening the door to even
larger migrant worker programs.
Australia's sovereignty is under serious threat from inside, from our own "democratic" elected government. We are being treated as a nondescript or international territory, with no borders or inherent/legitimate population, with rights to jobs and standards of living. Chinese property developers are ready poised to grab land and rights to build towers and housing in Melbourne, and displace residents from homes. What's the point of high trade between nations if it's not in our interests to have foreign workers, not tested locally? It's a Pyrrhic victory to have trade increased, but the Australian people swallowed and overwhelmed by the greed of foreigners.
ReplyDelete