Home - Migrants Building Power

Migrants Building Power is a free education, skill-share and support program open to all migrants, on or off visas, who want to address their workplace issues or fight back against exploitation of migrant working people. Based in Melbourne, we are a fully volunteer-run group of migrants, not funded by any institution or political party.

While silence doesn’t ensure our safety, getting organised with our coworkers does. We offer our program in order, from 1-3. We can run workshops for your community or workplace online or in-person. Our education is confidential, visual, interactive and about practical problem-solving.

THE PROGRAM

1.

Introductory workshop

Major Australian industries are held up by migrant labour. Bosses know that 90% of migrants won’t seek justice out of fear of visa cancellation and deportation, lack of means, inadequate government initiatives or ineffective legal avenues. This is how migrant exploitation has become a sure way for businesses to remain competitive.

We discuss common issues and types of exploitation that migrant workers face and how severe this problem is. We consider the available avenues (such as Fair Work, political parties, unions) for addressing injustice. Finally, we discuss what migrant workers can do to fight back.

2.

Legal Rights workshop

In this workshop we discuss the legal and union rights of migrants. We can tailor this workshop according to the needs of participants. While knowing your rights is important when building confidence for advocacy, we also discuss that migrants are placed in a position where their rights are difficult to enforce in Australia.