Saramad, centre, with fellow community leaders, Reeta Verma, left, and Hameed Nida, right. Credit:Pat Scala Since arriving as a refugee from Afghanistan, Saramad has worked on projects from big commercial building sites to residential houses. With only a basic command of English, it has been tough for him to win back what he is owed. When he asked about when he would be paid, his boss, he says, would always tell him "next week, next week". Saramad, 28, was engaged as a contractor, an arrangement his lawyer described as a "sham" to avoid paying entitlements. Once, when he was pursuing an underpayment of $8000, his employer " "switched off his telephone" and couldn't be tracked. Other times there have been threats of "gangsters" and "police" if he complained too much.

Illustration: Ron Tandberg Hameed Nida, himself a refugee from Afghanistan, now works with asylum seekers. He said construction work, particularly tiling, was attractive for Afghans, as they did not need English or extensive qualifications. But underpayment was common and people were scared to speak up because of fear of authority, courts and having their visas cancelled. "The lack of information about employment rights is really a big challenge," he said. Saramad and Nida spoke to Fairfax Media last week, along with workers and community leaders from Iran, South Sudan, India and Burma, in relation to the WEstjustice report.

The report highlighted both high levels of workplace exploitation and problems with the Fair Work Act and the legal rights of foreign workers on temporary visas. A Fairfax Media investigation in 2015 revealed about 80 per cent of foreign language job advertisements paid below legal rates. It indicated hundreds of thousands of workers were being underpaid in "black jobs", including in hospitality, agriculture and construction. Underpayment and exploitation is also rife in the fruit-picking industry, including among suppliers to major supermarkets, Coles, Woolworths and Costco. Reeta Verma routinely hears the stories of international students as part of her job as a law lecturer in the city. She also works with migrants on issues such as family violence.

"The past 10 years, there has been an explosion of international students and people on different types of visas," she says. "There's a lot more people in the market to do the job; employers know there is a long queue." Because of her background it's mostly Indian students who confide in her about working in Australia. "It's just accepted; underpayment is a norm," she says. "The majority of them are underpaid and they accept it; this is the pay they get." One worker Fairfax Media spoke to last week drove trucks, often from midnight to midday for a flat rate of $20 an hour - significantly less than the legal minimum rate. Working for the one client - he even wore a company uniform - he was paid as a contractor on an ABN in what appears to be another sham arrangement, according to his lawyer.

The driver, who was an accountant in Iran before he arrived in Australia six years ago, did not know he had been underpaid until he made inquiries after one period of three weeks when he was not paid at all. He got physically sick from the work, its routine, and the harsh hours "I didn't have time to cook," he says. "Work and sleep, work and sleep". Other workers, including cleaners and security guards, told Fairfax Media of being underpaid or not being paid at all for work. Mae Sin Win, who works with Burmese refugees of Karenni background, spent 18 years in a Thai camp after fleeing Burma. He said there were about 10,000 Burmese now in Melbourne. Many work as cleaners, in factories, and in the meat industry. Exploitation and bullying is rife.

The workers often feared local authorities, a reflection of their time in refugee camps in Burma and Thailand. "They don't speak out, don't complain, as they don't want to lose their jobs." Do you know more? Contact us securely via Journotips Follow Ben Schneiders on Facebook