THE FEDERAL government has committed $2.7 million to a compliance monitoring program that aims to protect seafarers from wage theft.
The funding, announced on Friday (13 September), would help the Australian Maritime Safety Authority, Fair Work Ombudsman and Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications and the Arts pilot the two-year program.
The program aims to increase monitoring of wages to seafarers on foreign-flagged vessels engaged in coastal trading and help the FWO investigate potential instances of non-compliance by employers.
The government said wage theft forces law-abiding businesses to compete with businesses that have an unfair advantage. It expects the program to provide a level playing field for Australian-crewed vessels by preventing the undercutting of wages by foreign flagged vessels.
The measure forms part of the government’s response to the Strategic Fleet Taskforce Report, released in November last year.
The taskforce, in its report, had recommended the government increase FWO compliance activities relating to the payment of wages on foreign vessels engaged in coastal trading. It specifically recommended the government provide additional funding to the FWO for these activities.
“Stronger administrative oversight will provide information to Government to better understand the extent of non-compliance and enable decisions to be made regarding what measures are required to increase compliance,” the taskforce wrote in its report.
Federal minister for employment and workplace relations Murray Watt said the government had made a range of changes to workplace relations, including criminalising wage theft.
“We’re now bolstering the Fair Work Ombudsman with additional resources to monitor for wage compliance in the maritime sector,” he said.
“Concerns in the sector have been raised and the government is committed to ensuring no worker is underpaid.”
And federal minister for infrastructure and transport Catherine King said it is important to support a viable shipping industry and a thriving workforce free of wage theft.
“That’s exactly what we are doing, with this pilot program being yet another part of our ongoing response to the Maritime Strategic Fleet Taskforce Report, to support this vital industry, its workers and the economies it serves,” Ms King said.
The two-year compliance monitoring pilot period will run from 2024-25 until 2025-26.
The government noted allegations of wages non-compliance in the maritime industry can be reported to the FWO at maritime@fwo.gov.au or anonymously through www.fairwork.gov.au/tipoff.
