The Rockliff minority government’s proposed amendments to the Residential Tenancy Regulations undermine the right to stable housing for primary industry workers.
Where a worker’s accommodation is provided by their employer, the Liberal Government’s changes will require that worker to vacate their housing immediately if they are terminated.
These changes will disproportionately affect migrant workers who work on-farm. Overseas workers who come to support Tasmanian industries need to have the assurance of safe and stable housing. These workers are already vulnerable – they’re likely low paid, away from home and have language and cultural barriers. We need to support them.
As they stand, the Rockliff minority government’s amendments will deter seasonal and farm workers from working in Tasmania. This could affect the outputs of our primary industries, who rely on these workers.
We can strike the right balance between the rights of the employer to access the premises in a timely manner, and the right of the tenant to have secure housing. This has been done in NSW and the ACT, who require four weeks’ notice for vacation of accommodation to be given to an employee upon termination of their employment.
