In a cost of living crisis, many workers in Australia are doing it tough, but spare a thought for people being paid 65 cents an hour.
If you wanted to catch a bus, you would need to work for about four hours to cover the cost of a one-way, off-peak fare.
If you wanted to make a phone call, you would need to work for about a week to cover the cost of the cheapest monthly phone plan on the market. That is assuming you have a handset.
But surely in modern day Australia, no one would tolerate working for less than one dollar an hour?
And yet, recent federal court cases have heard that some domestic workers employed by foreign diplomats in Australia have been paid as little as 65 cents an hour.
It is a little known quirk of the diplomatic system in Australia, diplomats are able to bring in a domestic worker to work for them.
I first became aware of the risks of abuse and exploitation inherent in this situation back in 2009, researching labour trafficking for the Australian Institute of Criminology. My report gave examples of domestic workers who had allegedly not been paid but also threatened with visa cancellation, had their movements restricted and in some cases been subjected to violence.
Efforts have been........