SafeWork NSW conducted its inspections across the Riverina. Photo: SafeWork NSW.
SafeWork NSW inspectors have issued 10 compliance notices to businesses across the Riverina (including Griffith) after inspecting 32 agricultural operations, as authorities step up scrutiny of labour hire and farming practices amid ongoing concerns about worker exploitation.
The notices were issued during a two-day joint compliance operation involving SafeWork NSW and the State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA).
SafeWork did not answer questions from Region on which towns in the Riverina the inspections took place, but a video posted on its social media pages indicated the horticultural sector in Griffith was targeted. The regulator also declined to provide details on when the inspections were conducted, or whether the businesses have since rectified the issues.
SafeWork said its inspectors identified issues including moving plant, electrical safety and hazardous chemicals, while SIRA officers checked workers’ compensation insurance coverage and compared workplace injury registers against workers’ compensation claims.
The Riverina operation formed part of a broader NSW horticulture blitz which also targeted Coffs Coast, where inspectors visited 28 businesses over eight days and issued 34 notices, including five prohibition notices requiring immediate action.
SafeWork NSW Commissioner Janet Schorer said the horticulture industry presented complex regulatory challenges because of the involvement of labour hire companies and supply chains.
“Managing work health and safety in the horticulture sector is a complex regulatory issue which often requires a coordinated response across multiple state and federal agencies,” Ms Schorer said.
“The results from both compliance operations are clear indicators that while SafeWork NSW is actively pursuing compliance, there is still more work to be done,” she said.
Work Health and Safety Minister Sophie Cotsis said the government had “zero tolerance” for the exploitation of workers.
“The compliance notices issued should serve as a warning to operators doing the wrong thing – you are on notice and if you are exploiting workers, we will throw the book at you,” she said.
The crackdown comes amid heightened scrutiny of labour hire practices in the Riverina following allegations of modern slavery and exploitation in the agricultural sector.
The issue was thrust in the spotlight after the death of 21-year-old Filipino worker Jerwin Royupa, who died in 2019 after exiting a moving vehicle while working at a Riverina winery.
A coronial inquest found Mr Royupa had become fearful of his employer and had been exploited during his short time in Australia.
He had arrived on a subclass 407 training visa expecting agricultural training, but the inquest found he was required to perform unpaid manual labour for up to 10 hours a day, six days a week.
The latest SafeWork blitz follows separate allegations of modern slavery involving labour hire arrangements in NSW horticulture, with the NSW Government saying it was monitoring allegations that some informal labour hire syndicates were exploiting vulnerable workers on berry farms.
SafeWork said inspectors were being trained to recognise signs of modern slavery and that information could be shared with federal law enforcement under changes to NSW workplace safety regulations that came into effect in July.
Ms Schorer said SafeWork would continue working with other agencies to improve safety in the sector.
