457 finishing

Batgurl

Anyone know what happens if a 457 is set to expire and a company doesn't want to renew it.

Would that count as them making you redundant or is the onus on the individual to find a way to stay?

mandrake04

Its not redundancy unless your position is made redundant, if you are a non-citizen you require a visa to entitle you to work in the country and that's not the fault of the employer. If your position is not made redundant and the employer doesn't want to renew the visa then they will fill the position with someone who has work rights.

If you want to keep your job you need work rights, up to you to find it or find another job/sponsor.

I know its crappy, but this is the way a lot of employers are starting to think these days. 457 had had a bad press because of rorting by few rogue employers and you probably know yourself plenty of employees.

It sort of ruins it for genuine employees like yourself, know your rights and remember you are entitled for flights home. Good luck Batgurl.

*You could go through a labor hire company under a labor agreement 457

Batgurl

Thanks Mandrake

It's not me luckily (years let on my current visa and I've negotiated PR) but a sister company colleague which got us all talking about the situation.

Thing is they are offering them ENS transition stream but only through an agent and they won't foot the bill. So there is that as a backup but it's almost blackmailing her!

I thought if they were liable for a redundancy payout plus flights home (plus the cost of replacement) that it might soften their cough but doesn't sound like it

ArseBurger

Employers who hire with a 457 will have the employee contract on a fixed employment term where the last day is the expiry date of the 457 visa. Employers cannot offer employment past this date as there is no way they can guarantee there will be a valid visa and the contract would be void if it extended past this date.

So in the situation you mention, it's just a contract coming to an end. Effectively.

Mellor

Even if it was a permanent position, and not a contract position (as mine was), you still wouldn't be entitled to redundancy. The reason you can't continue to work there is due to your work rights, if you had a valid visa to transfer to, the company would be happy to continue to employ you (or at least thats what they would say).

Does the employers obligation to fund return flights extend past the visa period? I can;t remember, but i'm sure its covered soemwhere

ArseBurger

What I meant by employee contract was not relating to contract work. Rather a permanent employee with a limitation within their contract where they cannot work past a certain date. i.e. the expiry date of the visa. The employee still has full time employee rights, it's just a fixed term.

Regarding flights back, you need to request them from your employer within 30 days of cessation of employment. This request needs to be in writing. The employer has no obligation to pay for flights if they are not explicitly requested by the employee within those 30 days.

Mellor

ArseBurger wrote: »

What I meant by employee contract was not relating to contract work. Rather a permanent employee with a limitation within their contract where they cannot work past a certain date. i.e. the expiry date of the visa. The employee still has full time employee rights, it's just a fixed term.

That's exactly what I thought you meant. Contract position, fixed term position, etc. The opposite is a permanent position, that has no such clause in the contract. (My job didn't, even though I was 457)
I never mentioned full-time. Permanent means something else entirely. Although a lot of people (incorrectly) use them interchangeably.

ArseBurger

Righto.

Batgurl

Thanks guys. Might get them to check over their contract one last time to see if there is any mention of it in there about an extension of visa.

Damn - was full sure she'd be able to negotiate this with them. i know with 457 the employer is supposed to foot the bill. Does anyone know if legally they have to for ENS-PR?

mandrake04

Batgurl wrote: »

Thanks guys. Might get them to check over their contract one last time to see if there is any mention of it in there about an extension of visa.

Damn - was full sure she'd be able to negotiate this with them. i know with 457 the employer is supposed to foot the bill. Does anyone know if legally they have to for ENS-PR?

There's not the same employer obligations for ENS as there is for 457.

It sounds that the employer is more Anti-457 than Anti-your Friend, I'm sure if your friend lobbed up with a PR visa there wouldn't be an issue. A lot of employers have been burned and changed their policy in regards to sponsoring 457.

Mellor

Batgurl wrote: »

i know with 457 the employer is supposed to foot the bill. Does anyone know if legally they have to for ENS-PR?

With the 457 the employers doesn't foot the whole bill, they pay the SBS & nomination costs, and the applicant pays for the visa.

For the ENS, the nomination cost is nil (transition stream), so there's no cost for the employer. And the visa costs $3.5k for the applicant, plus all the ancillary costs (medical, police check, partner etc)

ArseBurger

Some employers will cover the full cost of the 457. Usually bigger companies that are used to hiring with visas and have a system in place.

Similarly, larger companies do cover the full cost of ENS at times. However, 50% is more typical.