Benefits of labour hire arrangements in the agricultural industry

Queensland’s Australian-first labour hire licensing scheme is marking six successful years in operation.

The key focus of the scheme is to protect vulnerable workers by clamping down on rogue operators and users to support responsible labour hire. The scheme enables growers to feel confident they are engaging with reputable labour hire services.

The scheme has been well received in the agricultural industry as it assists in safeguarding the migrant worker streams including labour supplied through the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility scheme, with reports it enables a level playing field by giving assurance to workers and the growers that they are dealing with a legitimate industry.

During its six years of operation, there has been 26 successful prosecutions against unlawful labour hire licence-related practices totalling $1.895 million.

Tough compliance action sends a strong signal to the industry - it acts as a deterrent to those who might consider providing or using unlicensed hired labour methods.

The Labour Hire Licensing Compliance Unit urges all stakeholders to check the register of labour hire licences before engaging with any labour hire provider.

The register lists all the licensed providers in Queensland and their licence details, including any conditions.

This year, the scheme observes more than 4,000 licensed labour hire providers operating throughout Queensland across all industries.

The implementation of the scheme has been so successful, the proposed national labour hire licensing scheme is set to provide national coverage and have a scope closely aligned to the Queensland scheme following an agreement between industrial relations ministers across the country.

Further information

More information can be found at:

• Labour hire webpage
• Labour Hire Licensing Queensland website.