PALM worker exposes scheme gaps after being injured, homeless and left in visa limbo
A Tongan mechanic working in Australia under the PALM scheme was left homeless and without support after a workplace injury and his employer's collapse. The case highlights significant regulatory gaps in the protection of migrant workers when labour hire companies face financial distress.
Why it matters
It exposes systemic vulnerabilities in temporary visa programs and the lack of safety nets for migrant workers in the Australian agricultural sector.
Link copied Share Share article On Christmas Day, Davis Lausii slept in a park in country New South Wales.
The Tongan mechanic had arrived in Australia under the federal government's Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme and was recovering from a serious workplace injury, leaving him unable to work for months.
Behind the fruit and vegetables on Australia's supermarket shelves are workers whose stories are rarely heard.
On Christmas Eve, he says he was told the accommodation provided through his employer would no longer be paid for. With little notice and nowhere else to go, he spent four days sleeping in a borrowed car.
For Mr Lausii, a workplace injury was only the beginning.
His labour hire employer, Plant Grow Pick (PGP), was already under regulatory scrutiny after entering administration in late 2023 .
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