Joanna Tuffy (Labour)

I would be more inclined to accept the Minister's comments on the issue of collusion between an illegal alien and an employer if people had more options to come here to work. These options are limited under the current system.

On the points made by Senator Morrissey, employers need employees, which is surely the primary reason an employer would employ someone. The Senator is confusing the issue of exploitation with those raised in the amendment. It is a different matter. We had the recent case, for example, of Brazilian workers being exploited, despite having permits. We also have underage children working, yet we do not take such a heavy-handed approach to their employers.

If we had a proper green card system and a system which allowed asylum seekers to work, these provisions would be more acceptable. I agree we should do more to protect employees' rights, but that is a different issue.