Nineteen-year old Adil Abbas had the world ahead of him. He recently arrived in Australia from Pakistan to study information technology in Sydney. Within three weeks, he was killed when his motorbike collided with a ute in Campbelltown in Sydney's south-west. It was his third day on the job as an Uber Eats food delivery driver, using the Pakistani driver licence that he obtained only last year. Adil was the youngest of three brothers, and his family had made significant financial obligations for him to study in Australia. Like many international students, Adil hoped that studying in Australia would enable him to have better job prospects to support him and his family financially.

Sadly, Adil's story is not unique. He is the second food delivery worker to die in Sydney in the past month, after the death of a 22-year old student in Epping, and the thirteenth worker known to have died in Australia in the transport gig worker industry since 2017. That number is widely accepted to be underestimated. Gig workers in this country have no safe or fair minimum wage, no sick leave, no protection against unfair contract terminations and no workers compensation in the event of accidents. A McKell Institute survey in April of more than 1,000 transport gig workers found that roughly half earned less than the minimum wage and 56 per cent felt pressured to rush in order to make enough money and avoid losing their jobs.

In the past year, the Transport Workers' Union signed charters with DoorDash, Uber and Menulog calling for reform to set real standards. Gig workers who use a digital platform such as Uber or Menulog have low bargaining power and low authority over their work. The Federal Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Tony Burke, recently said:

We can't continue to have a situation where the 21st century technology of the gig platforms comes with 19th century conditions.

Put simply, too many loopholes exist, and they allow pay and conditions to be undercut. Closing those loopholes will ensure that gig workers have minimum standards of working rights and significantly reduce the harm they are causing workers. The Australian Government last week shelved legislation it brought forward that was set to be the first piece of legislation of its kind in the world to protect gig workers. It sought to do three main things: provide secure jobs, provide better pay for gig workers and, most importantly, create safer workplaces by eliminating the need to work in poor and desperate conditions. It would allow people to apply to the Fair Work Commission for orders for minimum standards, including pay, penalty rates, superannuation, payment terms, record keeping and insurance. It would provide genuine flexibility for gig workers and ease the pressure on them to work as long as possible and as often as possible just to make ends meet.

Gig workers would also have new rights to seek reinstatement if they have been unfairly deactivated from the platform they use. That would provide the same financial obligations as other workers, preventing gig workers from having their platform access and livelihood unfairly cut without a fair chance to defend themselves. Those proposed reforms are now being examined by a Senate inquiry and are set to return next year. Regardless of the form of the final legislation, the current framework must be improved to save lives.

Australia was once known as the workers' paradise. We pride ourselves on a fair go and a place where nobody should have to rely on tips to get by. We are a country of opportunity, and that is what drew Adil Abbas here. Future students who come to Australia seeking greater opportunity should not fear having to work in dangerous and, all too often, deadly working conditions just to achieve their dreams of a world‑class education. I send my condolences to Mr Abbas' family and friends during this difficult time. I commend Federal Labor and the Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Tony Burke, for their strong advocacy on this issue.