Employment in Australia: a jungle, however you got here.

Our right to work is one many of us often take for granted now. We get our feet in the door and then the money rolls in. But getting a job is one thing. Keeping it? That's quite another.

But taking a broader view of employment in Australia, it's easy to see the roots of its problems. There's either, from what I can see, too much competition or too few openings. Australian citizens by birth aren't the only ones in Centrelink queues, either. Today we have refugees and other migrants being granted asylum here with 457 working visas. Now, don't get me wrong, they deserve prosperity and stability et cetera, and this is not their fault, but when their visas limit vacancies for Australian workers, and foreign ones are often condemned to dreadful wages and working conditions, a big overhaul should be in order.

  

I know this trend isn't exclusive to Australia, either. Many southeast Asian countries have young Europeans working in venues in Western holiday destinations like Phuket. But why can't we, everywhere, produce and implement employment schemes which will really mean "equal opportunity"? How hard can that be?

But more on the poor conditions and wages foreign workers face in Australia. Cases like the 2015 7-Eleven exploitation scandal have uncovered some international workers being made to work for under half the minimum wage and to work well over 20 hours a week, breaching their visa conditions. This is obviously better than were they sent home and likely be paid five cents and hours making products in sweatshops. But not by very much.

I'm from a working-class background, but I am very well-educated on numerous subjects, and we all contribute to society. The big people wouldn't be so big with the little ones anyway, and nobody has ever gained professional experience without a chance - an offer - to do so. Whether under a Liberal or Labor government, Australia's socks must be pulled up right here, right now.