← INDUSTRY OVERVIEW • 2024 NATIONAL TEMPORARY MIGRANT WORK SURVEY
The Hospitality Industry & Migrant Workers in Australia
What the 2024 National Survey reveals about pay, conditions and rights for migrant workers in Australian hospitality, and what businesses in the sector can do about it.
What the data shows
X in Y
hospitality workers were paid below the legal minimum
More
than #%
were paid in cash
A of B
worked nights and weekends without penalty rates
“I worked 60 hours a week but only got paid for 20. When I complained, my boss threatened to cancel my visa.” — Maria
“I knew I was being underpaid, but I stayed silent. I needed the job to support my family back home.” — Raj
“I worked 60 hours a week but only got paid for 20. When I complained, my boss threatened to cancel my visa.” — Maria “I knew I was being underpaid, but I stayed silent. I needed the job to support my family back home.” — Raj
Our survey reached over 1,234 hospitality workers
"My employer kept my passport. I felt trapped—like I couldn't leave even though the conditions were terrible." — Laura
"They told me if I reported them, I'd be deported. I believed them for two years." — Ahmed
"My employer kept my passport. I felt trapped—like I couldn't leave even though the conditions were terrible." — Laura "They told me if I reported them, I'd be deported. I believed them for two years." — Ahmed
“I was studying full-time and working nights. My boss knew the visa rules and paid me cash under the table—always less than minimum wage.” — Sofia
“When I finally spoke up about missing wages, I found out I wasn't alone. Six of us were being treated the same way.” — Mike
“I was studying full-time and working nights. My boss knew the visa rules and paid me cash under the table—always less than minimum wage.” — Sofia “When I finally spoke up about missing wages, I found out I wasn't alone. Six of us were being treated the same way.” — Mike
Hospitality is one of Australia's largest employers of migrant workers. [X% of the survey's hospitality participants were on [visa types: e.g. student, working holiday, temporary skilled] visas.] It's also a sector where insecure work and underpayment are common. [One line on the main challenges, e.g. cash-in-hand wages, missing payslips, unpaid penalty rates, casual and contractor arrangements].
These workers are not passive victims of a broken system. They are exercising rights that are too often denied, and the problems below are systemic and fixable.
Hospitality in Charts
01 — Demographics
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02 — WAGES
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03 — Work arrangement
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04 — FAIR WORK COMPLIANCE
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