Dan AndrewsVerified account

Workers like Sorcha. She was working around 52 hours as a bartender every week, but only getting paid for 38. As she herself said, “they got a free week out of me every month.”

Then there’s James. He too prided himself on his hard work. But it didn’t stop his employer ripping him off to the tune of $13,000. And yet his boss still told him: “We value your work.” …just not enough to pay him properly.

Short-changing, underpaying and ripping-off your workers… It’s not just wrong. It’s criminal. And today I can tell you that, under a re-elected Labor Government, it will be.

Whether you’re a convenience store chain or a celebrity chef… If you deliberately and dishonestly underpay your workers. If you deny or deprive them of what is rightfully theirs. You will face jail. Up to ten years.

A fair and decent wage matters. But it’s not the only thing. Every morning, when I say goodbye to Cath and the kids, they never have to worry that I might not return that night. Other families don’t have that luxury.

In the last decade, 234 Victorians have lost their lives at work. 234 terrible tragedies. But they’re not just numbers. They’re real lives.

A 42-year-old foundry worker – and dad of two – whose kids lost a father. A 69-year-old painter – so, so close to retirement – who never made it home. An 18-year-old manufacturing worker – a son and a brother – whose life was just beginning.

Life was just beginning for Jack Brownlee as well. 21 years old. A loved son and brother. His workmate, Charlie Howkins, was a husband and father of two. On March 20 this year, Charlie and Jack both lost their lives when a trench collapsed at a worksite.