Welfare breakdown: Inquiry into Fijian living in squalor under Sydney overpass

Investigations have commenced into the shocking welfare failure of a Fijian in Australia who worked under the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) Scheme.

Minister for Employment, Productivity and Workplace Relations, Agni Deo Singh confirmed the inquiry follows a footage of a Fijian father of four living rough in squalor under a concrete underpass in Sydney.

The Fijian man, who admitted in the video taken by blogger Bula Brothers Abroad, that he went to Australia under the PALM scheme, lived in a tent under a Sydney bypass with two more people, a woman from Vietnam and a man from East Timor.

Scattered across the dirt were an old mattress slumped against a rusted bed frame and a pile of discarded clothes, including what appears to be female clothing, fluttering in the draft of the heavy traffic overhead.

For the past year, this has been home for a skilled worker from Macuata, Vanua Levu, who is now exposed as just one piece of a hidden humanitarian crisis brewing beneath Australia’s transit lanes.

However, claims have surfaced that the man had a drinking problem and was usually absent where he was previously employed. A Fijian family claimed on social media that they had taken the man in, but he was unenthusiastic about working.

“Our NEC (National Employment Centre) people back home together with the Country Liaison officers and the Fiji High Commission are investigating,” Mr Singh confirmed.

“A statement will be issued once the investigation is done.”

Australia’s High Commissioner to Fiji Peter Roberts said he was concerned to hear about the case.

“We are working with Fijian authorities to understand the details. The Australian Government takes the welfare of PALM workers seriously. Workers can access a range of onshore support in Australia, including through dedicated Country Liaison Officers,” he said.

“The Australian Government seeks to, wherever possible, support disengaged workers to return. Workers who have left the PALM scheme are encouraged to contact the Australian Department of Employment and Workplace Relations to discuss what options are available to them, including re-engagement.”

The man was initially deployed to an abattoir in Tamworth, New South Wales.

However, he claimed in the video that the isolation and displacement took a devastating toll when his marital difficulties crippled his mental wellbeing and work performance.

He said this resulted in him disengaging himself from his employment and without the immediate pastoral care and sponsorship of his employer, he became entirely disconnected from the grid.

The harsh reality was brought to light by popular Fijian digital creator Bula Boys Abroad, who tracked down the former worker after reports surfaced of iTaukei citizens sleeping rough in Sydney.

The creator’s harrowing video footage revealed that the metropolitan underpass has transformed into a makeshift international squatter community.

The man’s situation is further complicated by his claims of losing his passport, leaving him legally and logistically stranded in a bureaucratic limbo, unable to seek legitimate help or return home.

Feedback: talei.matairakula@fijisun.com.fj