Unexpected Policy Outcomes for Chinese Temporary Migrants in Australia

• In Event: 549 - Section on International Migration Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 18. Immigration Policies and Practices

Abstract

Studies have shown the unequal treatments temporary migrants face in the processes of immigration. In Australia for a short period of time and not citizens, they face conditions that allow for employer exploitation. Previous research has examined the role of the state and problems regulating temporary migrants, whether regulating their economic activities or protecting their human rights. Few studies, however, have explored how immigration policies contribute to “unexpected” outcomes that make working in the cash economy an “acceptable” option. Taking ethnic Chinese temporary migrants (international students and Working Holiday Makers) in Australia as an example, I argue that there is a gap between immigration policy intents and applications; at the same time, additional regulations bind migrants to unfair conditions. In this article I examine how temporary migrants understand their visa status and find that they mostly attribute work in the cash economy to “voluntary decisions”, and surprisingly, an acceptable decision for them. Such policy effects result in a more vulnerable and exploitable situation for temporary migrants in Australia’s labor market.

Author

• Yao-Tai Li, University of California- San Diego