00:02International student Mai was filled with pride when she landed her first job.
00:07At that time I was really happy because now I can live by myself, be more independent, not rely on
00:15my family.
00:16But her employer at a Canberra hospitality business underpaid her.
00:20Because I was an international student, so I was really afraid to speak up.
00:26International students in Australia are underpaid almost $3.2 billion each year, according to the Migrant Justice Institute.
00:34What we found is that the more that people were underpaid, the more likely they experienced conditions like having their
00:42passport confiscated or being made to work very long hours with no breaks.
00:47A Commonwealth funded study heard from almost 10,000 temporary visa holders.
00:52More than one third were using an Australian business number or ABN.
00:56That's more than four times the prevalence of ABN work in the general workforce.
01:02ABNs can misclassify employees as independent contractors, robbing them of entitlements.
01:08And while reports of cash in hand payments are declining, sham contracting is on the rise.
01:13What we're seeing now is increasing use of ABNs because then there's no record of these people as employees and
01:21their pay can't be compared against their entitlements under the Fair Work Act.
01:25The Department of Home Affairs allows temporary visa holders to stay in Australia for up to 12 months after their
01:30visa ends to pursue a workplace exploitation claim.
01:34But few ever do.
01:35Most of the international students we're looking at who've been egregiously underpaid are generally fearful to come forward.
01:43workers including Mai.
01:47.
01:47.
01:47.
01:48.
