Italian national Luca Russo has been employed as a catering and operations manager at Harbourview at the Northbridge Golf Club in Sydney. But since the business shut down due to the coronavirus pandemic, he is currently on unpaid leave.
“Since the day I moved to Australia in November 2014, I have never been without work”, he tells SBS Italian, “Until 2nd April: it was the first day I have not worked. Today I am confused about my future and the future of my family.”
After the restaurant closed for diners in mid-March, it continued to operate for takeaway customers. But now it has completely shut down due to safety concerns.
"We continued trading with takeaway for ten days but unfortunately, I had no choice but to cease operations as I was not able to keep the kitchen team safe with the social distancing rules," Mr Russo's manager, Doreen Cooper said.
Like hundreds of thousands of other temporary visa holders in Australia, Mr Russo cannot access taxpayer-funded welfare payments. But his employer-sponsored visa makes his situation even more precarious as he is barred from working for any other employer.
He is currently on a 457 visa and can only work for the business that sponsored him. Acting Minister for Immigration and Citizenship, Alan Tudge announced on Saturday the government will make accommodations for temporary skilled visa holders "who have been stood down but not laid off" but those who have lost their jobs should leave Australia
"Those visa holders who have been laid off due to coronavirus should leave the country in line with existing visa conditions if they are unable to secure a new sponsor," Mr Tudge said in a statement on Saturday.
This is, Mr Russo says, his worst fear.
“If, for any reason, the situation became unsustainable and my boss decides to shut down the business, I will be left with two choices: to find a new company willing to sponsor me, which is highly unlikely in hospitality industry at the moment, or I might have to leave the country," he says. In both situations, he will have sixty days.
I thought I was part of something, I felt integrated in the society in Australia. My son is 16 months, he was born here. I hoped he would be Australian one day, but I am not sure what I hope for anymore.
Migration professionals say there are thousands of people in Mr Russo's situation.
"The mandatory condition of working only for the sponsoring business means that holders of these visas will be in breach of the law they work anywhere else, even when they have been stood down, and such a move would then be grounds of visa cancellation," Melbourne migration agent Chamanpreet says.
Migration Institute of Australia, the representative body of migration professionals in the country, has approached the Department of Home Affairs to seek a waiver of this condition during the COVID-19 pandemic.
"We are asking these people to be allowed to do some sort of work if the business is closed under the current circumstances so that they can continue to put food on the table," Ms Chamanpreet added.
Emanuela Canini, a registered migration agent, says the government has been strongly urged to consider visa conditions relaxation or a special intervention to amend the existing legislation, in order to resolve all these cases.
However, she says, while it is easier to be flexible on policies and regulations, amending the primary legislation through the proper procedure is much harder and time-consuming.
While Mr Tudge also announced that the businesses will be able to reduce the hours of visa holders without them being in breach of their visa condition, it is of little reprieve for Mr Russo as he can't do any other work until the business that sponsored him starts operating again.
FECCA (Federation of Ethnic Communities Councils of Australia) estimates there are about 500,000 people on temporary visas who are not supported by the JobKeeper package and who face either losing their income, or have already lost it as a result of measures put in place to slow the spread of the coronavirus.
“The Australia government should assist all workers. Migrant workers, international students and working holiday visa makers contributed to the growth of Australia economy and we believe nobody should be let down during these challenging times," Joe Caputo, Honorary Presidents of FECCA says.
Mr Russo says he is finding himself in dire straits when he is "only a step away" from permanent residency.
"Australia is the country of ‘fair go’ and I was convinced that working hard and using my skills I could give my son, my family stability, a good life, better than in Italy. Losing all that keeps me up at night.
"I can’t bear the idea of having to start all over again in Italy after five years of sacrifices," he says, adding that not including temporary visa holders, such as himself in social security was unfair.
"Leaving out a whole category of people, skilled migrants and their families, in such an unbearable limbo, is outrageous. If the government will keep ignoring us I will not want to stay here anyway”.
