Submission to the Queensland Criminal Code and Other Legislation (Wage Theft) Amendment Bill 2020 (Education, Employment and Small Business Committee)
In July 2020, the Minister for Education and Minister for Industrial Relations, introduced the Criminal Code and Other Legislation (Wage Theft) Amendment Bill 2020 (Bill) into the Legislative Assembly. The Bill was referred to the Education, Employment and Small Business Committee for detailed consideration and report. The Committee received almost 30 submissions from both individuals and organisations.
The Salvation Army’s submission provides brief comment on the review of the Queensland Criminal Code and Other Legislation (Wage Theft) Amendment Bill 2020, which will amend the current criminal code to make wage theft a crime in the state of Queensland.
The Salvation Army has campaigned for changes such as these for some time through our work on modern slavery, immigration and exploitation.
The submission outlines:
- The Salvation Army’s work providing pastoral and social support to workers across Australia, particularly temporary and migrant workers, who have been underpaid or exploited by their employers;
- How this work has informed our position on the need to increase penalties and enforcement for wage theft; and
- The Salvation Army’s support for the legislation.
The Committee report
The Committee released their final report in August 2020. The committee recommended that the Bill be passed; and that the conciliation process proposed by the Bill, be mandatory.