The poultry company behind the Steggles and Lilydale brands has responded to this week's findings by the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) that it exploited and underpaid its foreign workers.
Baiada, which engaged labour hire companies to provide with foreign workers on 417 visas, mostly from Taiwan, at its Beresfield, Hanwood and Tamworth plants, said that in this it was no different from many companies in Australia.
“At all times we expect that those contractors will conduct their activities in accordance with the relevant legal and ethical standards, and in particular workplace laws or requirements,” the company said.
“We were deeply concerned by the reports that came to light detailing workers poor treatment at the hands of some contractors."
However according the FWO, workers were underpaid and were forced to work up to 18 hours a day without overtime. It was also revealed that some workers were being forced to live in housing provided by labour hire contractors and $100 in rent was unlawfully deducted from their pay.
The investigation, which was prompted by a Lateline report in 2013, also found that much of the work was "off the books" with foreign workers paid in cash.
Ombudsman Natalie James said: "I am deeply concerned by the findings of this inquiry, particularly the behaviour of Baiada and its contractors who failed to engage with us about serious concerns about compliance with workplace laws on the company's sites."
"In my view, Baiada and others in this supply chain now need to consider the legal, moral and ethical implications of continuing to operate in a manner that fails to deliver workers their minimum entitlements."
Baiada said that following a recent internal review, most of the measures that the FWO recommended in its report were already in place, or were being initiated, across its business.
“We have already responded to the report’s authors in detail and look forward to meeting them to provide an accurate account of our company’s operations. We agree that it is very important to establish an on-going collaboration on this very important matter and we look forward to engaging with the FWO in the future.”
Aussie Farmers Direct said the findings vindicated its recent decision to cease stocking Lilydale chicken.
“We took no pleasure in our decision to stop buying chicken from Baiada, as we are passionate about supporting Australian farmers and growers,” the company said.
“However, we expect our suppliers to act ethically and responsibly. And our customers shop with us because we do put purpose and principles before profit.”
