Do you know about the new laws re illegal workers

[kevinh]

It will soon be an offence under the Migration Act to employ an illegal worker (someone who is in Australia lawfully but does not have the appropriate visa).

It will also be an offence to refer an illegal worker, so presumably this includes recruitment companies.

The penalty is $66,000 per illegal worker!

Apparently employers can check a person's status online at http://www.immi.gov.au/managing-aust...s/evo-orgs.htm - the permission of the individual is required along with details from their passport.

[mspecht]

ouch

Having said that for most good recruiters this should not be an issue.

[kevinh]

Originally Posted by mspecht

ouch

Having said that for most good recruiters this should not be an issue.

But are you going to ask every applicant for their passport?

if not, how do you decide who to ask and who not to ask?

[mserica]

I'm not surprised that it has taken this long for the fines to be increased. At present we have about 30 international employees, lets not forget for every 5 that apply there is at least 1 candidate that does not have the appropriate visa!

The immigrations website works a treat!

[kevinh]

I'm sure it does work and I think it's great that the Government have provided a way for employers and recruiters to check an individual's visa status. But do you ask every single applicant for a job to provide their passport details?

If not, then how to you decide who to ask and who not to ask ?

I'm thinking about the discrimination issues!

[AnneM]

Hi, I ask every new employee to provide me with a copy of their passport and, if it is not an Australian passport I check their visas. If it's too difficult to interpret the visas I just call the immigration info line or go on their website...they've always been helpful. Okay, I'm in a relatively small organisation so it's not an every day occurrence for me but I'm sure it's better to be safe than sorry. Also, there shouldn't be any discrimination issues if you ask everyone for this documentation. It would only be an issue if you only asked some people.

[Sonya P]

Originally Posted by AnneM

Also, there shouldn't be any discrimination issues if you ask everyone for this documentation. It would only be an issue if you only asked some people.

That's right, but what if someone doesn't have a passort ?

Isn't it discriminatory to say "I'm not offering you a job because you don't have a passport?"

[HRSense]

I have always asked all prospective employees to supply EITHER a birth certificate or a passport as part of the application process, and make a statement in the process (advert, or job documentation) that permanent residency is a condition of offer.

It cannot be seen as discrimination if everyone is asked and anyway, I hardly think someone who doesn't have permanent residence has a discrimination case about why they were not offered, and if they are Australian with an accent, then due dilligence is required, especially in the light of current issues!

[Julia]

I have always ask for passport and /or birth plus drivers licence of everyone and then those without Aust, go through the government visa checking process.

If you have a requirement to check other things like quals and criminal history at the same time you could investigate into outsourcing the whole lot using a service called Refsure. They are quite cost effective.

[HRbeat]

Doing a recent police check audit in our workplace brought to my attention that not every Australian has a passport and/or a birth certificate. However, I think that a birth certificate is a basic personal document that eveyone should have and be able to provide.

In our online ads, we always specify that only people with work rights in Australia can apply, given the short timeframes and demand for recruitment. However, we still get the odd number of applicants who would try even if they don't have work rights.

From an information management point of view, I would recommend that proof of work rights/residence in Australia should be provided at 1st level interview and not necessarily included in their application.

Either way, there is exposure for discrimination for age given that all documents required to prove work rights/residence have birthdays on them! It's not just about who and when we do it...and it's about how we handle the whole of recruitment and selection process and the applicant/candidate experience.

[kevinh]

I'm going to create a poll to explore this topic a bit further. But before I do so, let's look at the documents that can prove our right to work in Australia.

The only ones I can think of are an Australian birth certificate, an Australian Citizenship certificate or a passport, which if not Australian must contain a valid work visa.

Have I missed anything ?

[HRbeat]

You have it pretty much covered! Any other forms of identification does not necessarily indicate a right to work in Australia (e.g. TFN, Driver's Licence, etc.)

[Lance]

Originally Posted by HRbeat

You have it pretty much covered! Any other forms of identification does not necessarily indicate a right to work in Australia (e.g. TFN, Driver's Licence, etc.)

Out of curiosity, how is it that someone can have a Tax File Number if they are not entitled to work in Australia? I would have thought that the process of getting a TFN would involve a check on the right to work?

[kevinh]

Originally Posted by Lance

Out of curiosity, how is it that someone can have a Tax File Number if they are not entitled to work in Australia? I would have thought that the process of getting a TFN would involve a check on the right to work?

You can get a TFN if you have a visa that allows you to work, such as a 12 month working holiday visa, but once the visa expires you still have the TFN. Many people stay on after their work visa expires.

I know someone who stayed on for years after their working holiday visa had expired and just kept working (for a Govt legal dept!).

Once someone has been here for a few years and they have a local work history and references, if they say they are a permanent resident many employers and recruiters would not question that.

[HRbeat]

Not only that...international students are advised to apply for a Tax File Number so their bank accounts doesn't get taxed the maximum. Students who have a visa to study and stay in Australia for 12 months or more are classified as permanent residents for taxation purposes.