A Red-Tape Band-Aid or a Solution? Lessons from the United Kingdom's Gangmasters (Licensing) Act 2004 for Temporary Migrant Workers in the Australian Horticulture Industry
Australian Journal of Labour Law, Volume 30 (2017)
35 Pages Posted: 18 Oct 2017 Last revised: 19 Oct 2017
Date Written: October 16, 2017
Abstract
Addressing the systematic exploitation of migrant workers in the agriculture, horticulture and shellfish gathering industries has been the subject of specific reforms in the United Kingdom. This article concerns whether the Gangmasters Licensing Authority (GLA) provides a useful model for introduction in Australia, focusing on the use of migrant workers in the horticulture industry. This article reviews evaluations of the GLA and argues that the GLA model may be an appropriate addition to the Australian labour law regulatory framework. However, these evaluations disclose certain key limitations of the model. If a licensing scheme is introduced in Australia, it should be introduced with necessary modifications and other complementary strategies to enable it to overcome these limitations.
Keywords: Labour law; labour migration; migrant workers; regulation; labour hire
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