The Human Rights and Anti-Discrimination Commission has initiated an investigation into the working conditions and reported issues of exploitation and violence affecting Fijians who work abroad under various employment schemes. This decision follows the tragic death of a 24-year-old Fijian woman who was a migrant worker in Australia, participating in the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility Visa 403 program.
Commission chair Pravesh Sharma emphasized the need to look into the working environment surrounding the deceased worker, as publicly reported, which may have played a role in her death. The Commission has reached out to the Ministry of Employment, Productivity, and Industrial Relations for information regarding the incident, given the Ministry’s involvement in facilitating the migrant worker program.
Sharma expressed that the investigation will include collaboration with relevant authorities in both Fiji and Australia. He highlighted the vulnerability of migrant workers globally, who often endure long hours for meager wages under unsafe living and working conditions, frequently without access to healthcare or legal support. Many of these workers may face physical and verbal abuse as well as racial discrimination.
He pointed out the essential rights of migrant workers, such as the freedom to associate and join labor unions. Questions about oversight of the living and working conditions of Pacific migrant workers were raised, including whether there is a system for these workers to report violence and exploitation.
Sharma reaffirmed that all migrant workers deserve to be free from any form of torture—physical, mental, or emotional—and should not be subject to cruel, degrading, or excessively harsh treatment or punishment. He noted that Fiji ratified the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families in 2019. Sharma concluded by stating that Fiji aims to safeguard the rights of migrant workers employed domestically and insists that the rights of Fijian workers overseas be equally protected.