“Migrant workers are frequently victims of under legal minimum wage pay, abuse, discrimination, bullying and harassment in the workplace,” said Robert Reid, FIRST Union General Secretary.

“Unions exist to protect and advance the collective interests of workers, and it is our duty to make sure that migrant workers’ rights are protected,” Robert Reid said.

Dennis Maga, FIRST Union UNEMIG coordinator, said the network is assisting migrant workers with employment and immigration matters, holding education events and supporting migrant workers to network with others.

“The TVNZ feature exposed the complete lack of enforcement of migrant workers rights, because there is no government agency actively investigating conditions for migrant workers,” said Dennis Maga, formerly a union official in the Philippines.

“Migrant workers don’t complain about their employers for fear of losing their job and working visa.  They don’t want to be deported, so aren’t able to speak out.  They mostly only react to their exploitation once dismissed – and it is very expensive for them to get legal support.”

“By forming UNEMIG, there is now a body that can investigate exploitative practises and support migrant workers to access the decent work and conditions they are entitled to,” Dennis Maga said.