Here’s How Much International Students Suffered in Australia During the Pandemic

Students left in limbo.

The coronavirus pandemic has hit the world hard, with many of us left without work or studying from home, and our day to day life becoming drastically different.

Arguably, international students in Australia have experienced some of the worst of the pandemic’s fallout. A survey of 6,000 international students and temporary migrants, conducted and yet to be released by the University of New South Wales and the University of Technology Sydney, found that the majority felt disappointed with Australia’s response and treatment of them during the pandemic outbreak.

According to the ABC, 59 per cent of students surveyed said, due to their experience in Australia during the coronavirus pandemic, they would be a lot less inclined to return to Australia or recommend Australia as a place for others to study.

From the beginning it seemed that the federal government wanted to do very little to assist migrant workers and international students. The Government regularly told temporary visa holders to just 'go home' if they could no longer support themselves during the pandemic.

But for some, going home was extremely difficult or just not an option. Many students chose to stay to not lose graduate job opportunities, many flights were unavailable or at ridiculously high prices and many countries borders were already closed, leaving some with no other choice.

With little options left. the government allocated $7 million in funding to the Red Cross to provide emergency relief to migrant workers and international students.

Despite this hardship, international students who stayed in Australia were also specifically excluded from federal wage subsidies like JobKeeper or JobSeeker, despite many other countries like Canada and Ireland offering wage help to students who were stuck.

Unions NSW have accused the Commonwealth of abandoning migrant workers and students as the impacts of the pandemic has led many to go along with unpaid or underpaid work just to get by.

A similar survey of 5,000 international students conducted by Unions NSW had found that 60 per cent had lost their job, 25 per cent had indicated that their hours were substantially reduced, 31 per cent didn’t have enough money to pay rent and three per cent reported homelessness.

With many international students experiencing unfair working conditions during the pandemic, they also feel as though they can’t raise concerns about exploitation to authorities.

Many international students fear being caught breaching their visa restrictions by working more than the limit of 20 hours a week, as employers seize the opportunity and encourage staff to work extra hours.

Unions NSW is encouraging any students experiencing unfair treatment and exploitation in the workplace to report to the Fair Work Commission so that they are protected from punishment from the Home Affairs Department.

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