The National Farmers Federation (NFF) has flagged it would be setting up a bespoke digital labor management app, in response to significant breaches of employment law.
NFF president Fiona Simson told the Melbourne Australian Farm Institute (AFI) conference, labor supply and security were critical issues.
“There has been a huge focus on agricultural companies not doing the right thing, by employees,” Ms Simson said.
“That’s been something that has been very difficult, as an industry, to actually cope with.
“While 99 per cent of employers are doing the right thing, or think they are doing the right thing, they tend to get over their problems by employing labor hire companies.
“The NFF and industry recognise that is totally unacceptable and we need to actually take a leadership role and address it,” Ms Simson said.
She said the NFF had “significant discussions” with the Fair Work Ombudsman and was working on a digital labor market app.
The new app would match workers with jobs and also look at visa, and employment law.
“You are managing not just a particular visa requirement, you are actually managing the workers requirements,” Ms Simson said.
The app aimed to “change the relationship between the employer, and employee.
“Sham contracting has been a huge issue in our industry - determining whether your worker is an independent contractor, or, in fact, should be a full time employee has been a full time issue,” she said.
Apart from time and attendance records and correct interpretation of awards, there was administration around tax, the super guarantee levy, insurance and licences.
“A lot of these things are issues farmers know they should manage, yet they are sometimes relying on labor hire firms to manage, but in actual fact, are being let down by the process.”
The app would identify sham contracts, at the point of employment.
“It will resolve a lot of issues farmers are finding difficult,” Ms Simson said.
With less and less employees on farms, and more need for seasonal workers, digitising the paperwork should take the risk out of the equation for farmers.
“It should provide better compliance with some of the critical requirements of the Fair Work Ombudsman.”
