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Australian unions welcome the lifting of minimum wage for skilled migrants

AUSTRALIAN unions welcomed the end of a decade-old freeze on the minimum wage for skilled migrant workers today.

The move is part of an overhaul of what the government described yesterday as a broken migration system that fosters exploitation and favours attracting low-paid employees over filling critical skill shortages.

Speaking yesterday, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil said: “What has emerged is a system where it is increasingly easy for migrants to come to Australia in search of a low-paid job, but increasingly difficult for migrants with the skills that we desperately need. 

“One of the reasons there is so much exploitation in Australia is because we have allowed low-wage migration programmes to operate in the shadows.”

The Temporary Skilled Migration Income Threshold (TSMIT) had been frozen by the previous government at 53,900 Australian dollars a year since 2013.

A new minimum wage of AU$70,000 (£37,141) would apply from July 1, Ms O’Neil said.

A government statement said that “about 90 per cent of all full-time jobs in Australia are now paid more than the current TSMIT, undermining Australia’s skilled migration system.”

Ms O’Niel said that the country’s migration system was broken and “failing migrants.”

The Australian Council of Trade Unions welcomed the government’s “commitment to overhauling our migration system.”

The union federation said: “The government’s commitment to design exploitation out of the system is critically important and we look forward to working with them to see this realised.

“We welcome a system that enables temporary skilled visa holders having a pathway to permanency.

It said: “All migrant workers should be able to change employers and enforce their workplace rights without jeopardising their ability to stay in the country.

“The lift to the TSMIT after a decade of neglect is an important first step but more needs to be done to ensure this rate is not used to undercut wages and that it increases over time.”

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