STARTING this week (July 13), the Fair Work Commission will hear the Australian Workers Union’s (AWU) case for amending the Horticulture Award to guarantee every worker on every farm is entitled to take home the minimum casual rate of pay, currently $25.41 per hour.
The union will commence its case to ensure fruit pickers are guaranteed at least minimum wages, instead of ‘piece rates’ that they claim have seen some workers being paid as little as $3 an hour.
Under the AWU’s proposed amendment, piece rates arrangements would still be permitted, but every worker would be guaranteed the award rate as a floor. AWU National secretary, Daniel Walton, said he was confident his union’s case was strong and just.
“Australia was built on the principle of a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work. Piece rates violate this principle, making it easy for vulnerable workers to be cheated, ripped off, and exploited,” Mr Walton said.
“The government will fight this because it undermines their new strategy of bringing in easily exploited workers from South East Asia and the Pacific.
“Report after report has shown us that exploitation, abuse, and even slavery is widespread on Australia’s farms.
“The farm lobby loves to claim that workers on piecework arrangements make more than the minimum wage. If that’s the case what we’re proposing should have no impact on them. There is no reason we should accept that fruit and vegetable picking exists in an industrial no man’s land outside Australia’s norms and standards. Minimum wage applies to every other job, it should apply here too.”
