Proposing mobility visas as an alternative to employer sponsorship: Addressing inequalities in the treatment of temporary migrant workers

Abstract

Many countries use employer-sponsored visas to regulate migrant worker recruitment. By tying each sponsored migrant to a single employer, employer-sponsored visas have contributed to problems of workers being underpaid and mistreated. Through a critical assessment of temporary visas in Australia, particularly the Temporary Skill Shortage visa, and an analysis of relevant Australian and international literature, we argue that employer-sponsored visas are fundamentally flawed in their design and should be replaced. We consider various alternative options to employer sponsorship for regulating migrant worker recruitment before proposing the creation of a ‘mobility visa’, which would allow migrant workers to move freely between employers. We argue a mobility visa is a superior model for protecting worker equity and voice while also helping to address labour market needs.

A ‘fair go’ values framework for public policy

“…A bipartisan consensus on the need for a high-skilled migration program that would be more flexible in meeting the needs of the labour market characterised the fourth period between 1996 and 2023 (Boucher & Gest, 2018). However, some have argued that the focus on encouraging economic growth has unduly empowered business, enabling widespread wage-theft and exploitation of temporary migrant workers (Clibborn & Wright, 2023).…”