Stories of labour exploitation obtained by Domus 8.7, the Australian Catholic Anti-slavery Network’s modern slavery remediation service, feature in a new Property Council resource for the Australian construction sector.
Ten construction workers shared their experiences with Domus 8.7 Program Manager Jenny Stanger for the Property Council of Australia publication, “Indicators of vulnerability to modern slavery in property and construction”.
“These workers have many indicators of forced labour – underpayment, non-payment, excessive hours, deceptive recruitment, retention of identity documents, restriction of movement and association,” Ms Stanger said.
“We thank the workers, whose identities remain concealed, for sharing their powerful stories to draw attention to the conditions that too many in their industry are working in right now.
“This resource and these workers’ testaments are a wake-up call about the level of exposure faced by Catholic organisations undertaking building and construction projects.”
The recent ACAN executive summary publishes aggregated data of spend by Catholic organisations with suppliers in industries and sectors considered high risk for modern slavery.
A total of $1.43 billion was spent on building and construction projects during the most recent reporting period across Catholic education, community services, health and aged care.
“Australian Catholic organisations spend more on building and construction than any other category with a high risk of modern slavery. After six years of the Modern Slavery Act, leadership should be communicating clear expectations of property developers, prior to awarding tenders,” Ms Stanger said.
“The risk of forced labour is even greater when large suppliers, involved in major construction projects, fail to comply with the Modern Slavery Act. This is something quick and easy to check on the Modern Slavery Statements Register.”
“We strongly encourage building project managers in Catholic organisations to deploy ACAN Program tools and resources to mitigate risk to construction workers on site.”
The Property Council launched “Indicators of vulnerability to modern slavery in property and construction” in Sydney on August 14.
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Voices of exploited workers cry out for justice in Australian construction sector (ACAN)
