- Negotiations
A bilateral trade agreement between Australia and China was finalised in 2015.
This agreement is controversial in Australia because it increases entry of temporary Chinese workers in a large number of occupations, without testing first if local workers are available. There are also provisions for Chinese companies with projects worth over $150 million to negotiate the number of foreign workers they bring in as well as their pay and conditions. This is the first time an arrangement which could allow most of the workforce to be imported has been included in any Australian trade agreement. It is unclear whether recent changes to the regulations of Australia’s Migration Act will be sufficient to ensure that such workers are not exploited.
Temporary migrant workers in Australia are already at a high risk of exploitation. There have been a number of studies showing exploitation of temporary workers, working long hours in dangerous conditions at less than minimum wages. Without greater protections in place there are concerns that increased numbers of temporary workers negotiated through trade agreements could lead to more cases of exploitation.
One important impact of the agreement is how it will open the doors to more Chinese investment in Australian agriculture. China is looking to secure its food supply by investing in agribusiness abroad, whether by investing directly in farms or buying into supply chains. Australia is an important source of meat and to a lesser extent dairy for China, and so ChAFTA is expected to boost Chinese deals in Australia’s livestock industry.
The ChAFTA is also controversial because it contains Investor-State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) provisions, which allow foreign investors to bypass national courts and sue governments before an arbitration tribunal for compensation if they can argue that changes to law or policy harm their investment. This gives increased power to corporations at the expense of democracy and the public interest.
Contributed by AFTINET
last update: March 2016
Photo: PughPugh/CC BY 2.0
6-Jun-2016
Invest in Australia
The Electrical Trades Union has lashed the Federal Government following revelations that seven Chinese workers were exploited and paid a fraction of their legal entitlements.
15-Dec-2015
SBS
The China free trade agreement will sap $4.2 billion from federal government tariff revenues.
4-Dec-2015
Lexology
A guide to ISDS in the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement: A hollow promise or an answer to ISDS’ critics?
26-Oct-2015
The Australian
Australia’s largest food and liquor wholesaler is looking to Chinese middle-class shoppers to boost its fortunes, setting up space in one of China’s largest online shopping malls as part of a broader push into a huge market that is increasingly infatuated with Australia brands and produce.
23-Oct-2015
Le Petit Journal
L’opposition travailliste a trouvé un accord avec le gouvernement sur le China-Australia Free Trade Agreement, après des concessions du Ministre du Commerce sur la régulation de l’immigration créée par ce traité.
21-Oct-2015
Stock & Land
The China-Australia free trade agreement will come into force before the end of the year after a compromise deal was finally struck between the federal government and opposition.
12-Oct-2015
http://www.afr.com/news/politics/co...
22-Sep-2015
Bill Shorten’s demand to impose new labour market testing requirements on Chinese workers who may come to Australia under the China-Australia free-trade agreement would involve actively discriminating against China compared with Australia’s other FTA partners, according to the think tank headed by former Labor foreign minister Bob Carr.
18-Sep-2015
Australia’s new Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has only been in the job for four days but has already made it clear that one of his most important tasks is to have the China-Australia Free Trade Agreement (ChAFTA) pass through the parliament.
17-Sep-2015
Red Flag
There’s freedom for the bosses to hire and fire at will and to shut down their businesses, throwing thousands onto the dole. But there’s little freedom for workers to strike for their rights.