Employers Turn to ABNs to Sidestep Fair Work Obligations and Underpay Migrants
Employers are increasingly requiring migrant workers to use Australian Business Numbers, allowing them to avoid Fair Work Act entitlements and pay below minimum wage.
A new study finds Australian employers are swapping cash-in-hand schemes for the creation of Australian Business Numbers (ABNs) to classify migrant staff as contractors, thereby evading Fair Work Act obligations. The research, based on responses from close to 10,000 temporary-visa workers, highlights widespread underpayment, with international students losing an estimated $3.18 billion each year. Cases like a Canberra hospitality worker named “Mai” describe flat-rate pay below minimum wage, rounded-down hours and threats of immigration reporting.
Associate Professor Bassina Farbenblum of the Migrant Justice Institute links deeper exploitation—passport confiscation, excessive hours, intimidation—to the degree of wage theft. The Department of Home Affairs introduced a 2024 temporary visa allowing victims to stay for up to 12 months to pursue claims, yet officials have not disclosed how many have used it. Critics argue the scheme remains under-utilised, leaving many migrants to endure unfair conditions.
Why it matters
It reveals a growing loophole that lets employers dodge labor laws, leaving vulnerable migrants underpaid and exploited.
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