This is a joint media release from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and Department of Home Affairs’ Australian Border Force (ABF).
The Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and Department of Home Affairs’ Australian Border Force (ABF) have joined forces to investigate labour hire providers and protect workers in the agricultural industry, particularly the horticulture sector, in Griffith, New South Wales.
This week, the 3 regulators visited more than 15 farms in the region, with the majority growing citrus fruit.
The investigations in the food bowl of the Riverina, under the Shadow Economy Taskforce, focus on uncovering employers’ unlawful practices, including:
- underpaying wages, penalty rates and other entitlements, including super
- non-compliance with tax and super obligations
- failing to withhold and remit pay as you go withholding (PAYGW) tax
- failing to provide accurate pay slips to workers
- non-lodgment of activity statements and income tax returns
- incorrect reporting of business income and expenses
- breaches of obligations under the Migration Act 1958 including migrant worker exploitation and unlawful provision of immigration assistance.
The 3 regulators have zero tolerance for any employers deliberately avoiding their obligations. Working together, the ATO, FWO, and ABF visited employers selected using risk profiling, sophisticated data analytics and intelligence shared across Shadow Economy Taskforce partners, including community tip-offs.
Investigations are ongoing.
The Shadow Economy Taskforce brings regulators together to protect workers from exploitation, detect and disrupt deliberately hidden income-earning activities, recovering stolen revenue so that essential community services Australians rely on like healthcare, education and infrastructure don’t miss out on funding.
To find out how to report suspected tax evasion or shadow economy behaviour, including worker exploitation, visit ato.gov.au/tipoff.
For free resources, including information on pay and piece rates, keeping the right records, and guides to self-auditing and labour contracting, visit FWO’s Agriculture and Horticulture Showcase webpages. Employers and employees can also visit fairwork.gov.au, call the FWO Infoline on 13 13 94 or access a free interpreter service by calling 13 14 50. The FWO also has an online anonymous report tool including options to report in languages other than English. Employees can also seek information from their union if they are a union member.
Employers can check the work rights of prospective employees by using Home Affairs’ Visa Entitlement Verification Online system to ensure they do not unintentionally allow illegal work. Individuals and businesses can face substantial penalties for each worker employed without valid work rights, including workers engaged through labour hire and recruitment providers.
Anyone with information relating to potential immigration offences or suspicious activity is encouraged to contact Home Affairs and make a report online at Border Watch. Reports can be made anonymously.
ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding
ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding said Operation Flint is lighting a fire under unlawful practices that don’t pass muster in Griffith’s agricultural sector.
‘Griffith is one of Australia’s most productive growing regions and there’s no room for operators cutting corners or exploiting honest growers.’
‘We’re seeing labour hire practices that simply don’t stack up. Operation Flint is sparking action to bring those arrangements into line.
‘Outsourcing labour doesn’t mean outsourcing responsibility. Farmers need to know exactly who they’re dealing with and how their workforce is being paid and treated. If the cost of labour is unusually cheap, there’s usually a reason behind it.’
‘We’re not going to let unlawful practices take root in Griffith. Regulators are working together to strike at the source, using data, community intelligence and on-the-ground action to uncover what’s really going on.’
‘Operation Flint is about bringing these practices out of the shadows and making it clear: if you’re not playing by the rules, you can expect to be in our sights.’
‘Last financial year 44 individuals and entities were prosecuted in NSW for shadow economy-related offences, highlighting the result of coordinated compliance action across the state to address these behaviours,’ Mr Goding said.
Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth
Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth said parallel regulation is a key component of the agency’s compliance and enforcement policy, and Fair Work Inspectors were keeping the pressure on Riverina labour hire providers and growers. The FWO had previously found non-compliance in the region’s horticulture sector to be rife.
‘The FWO is back in the Riverina at Griffith, this time with fellow regulators, and we want to see improvement but will be holding to account any labour hire businesses or growers doing the wrong thing,’ Ms Booth said.
‘Inspectors will ensure the hard-working people who pick our fruit and vegetables are getting all the pay and entitlements laid out in their award and other workplace laws.
‘Growers need to play their part, and if they are using labour hire providers they must take measures to ensure the workers are still being paid lawfully. If growers are knowingly involved in non-compliance by labour hire providers, they too can be liable under the Fair Work Act.’
The FWO found the Riverina was one of the top 5 regions for non-compliance with workplace laws during its investigations in 15 regional hotspots nationally within its Horticulture Strategy 2021-2024. The FWO found then that 83 per cent of labour hire employers it investigated in the Riverina had breached their workplace obligations.
‘Horticulture is a priority sector for the FWO, as many employees within this sector are visa holders and young people, who can be vulnerable to exploitation. They often fear losing their job or their visa – but we would like to remind them they have the same workplace rights under the Fair Work Act as other employees in Australia, and protections exist for their visa if they call out any breaches to us.’
ABF Commander Field Operations and Sponsor Monitoring (A/g) Tim Thorley
‘Employers who exploit migrant workers or disregard Australia’s migration laws place vulnerable workers at risk and gain an unfair advantage over businesses doing the right thing. Operations like this help ensure a level playing field for employers across Griffith and the broader Riverina region.’
‘Our officers are focused on identifying and disrupting unlawful labour hire arrangements, visa breaches and migrant worker exploitation. We know regional industries rely on seasonal workforces, and we want to ensure migrant workers are employed lawfully and treated fairly.’
‘Working alongside our partner agencies, we’re continuing to share intelligence, data and operational resources to support on-the-ground compliance activities that detect and disrupt those who seek to operate in the shadows rather than follow the rules,’ Commander Thorley said.
Notes to journalists
- Photos and videos from Operation Flint are available to download from the ATO media centre
- A high-resolution headshot of ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding is available from the ATO media centre.
- A high-resolution headshot of Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth is available from the Fair Work Ombudsman Newsroom,
- Media grabs of ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding discussing Operation Flint are available from the ATO media centre.
- Media grabs of ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding discussing the shadow economy are available from the ATO media centre.
- Interviews are available with the Chair of the Shadow Economy Taskforce ATO Assistant Commissioner Tony Goding on request to the ATO Media Unit ([email protected]).
- Interviews are available with Fair Work Ombudsman Anna Booth on request to FWO Media ([email protected]).
- ATO file footage is available for download and use in news bulletins from the ATO media centre.
Contact details:
[email protected] | 02 6216 1901