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OFW help in Australia and New Zealand: who Filipino workers can call when work goes wrong

Tips · 2026-10-22 · 10 min read

For OFW help in Australia, there are two kinds of help and you may need both. For pay, hours, leave or how you are treated at work, the Australian government's Fair Work Ombudsman is the office with the power to act, and you can reach it in your own language through an interpreter. For help as a Filipino worker abroad (welfare, your contract, your OWWA membership, a recruiter back home), the Philippine government's Migrant Workers Office (MWO) at the embassy in Canberra or Wellington, the DMW hotline 1348 and OWWA are your offices. New Zealand works the same way, with its own employment rules and the MWO in Wellington.

Save the numbers below before you fly, kabayan: problems at work are easier to fix early.

The short list: who to call, and for what

The DMW contact details are on its official contact page. Keep a screenshot of this table on your phone and a printed copy with your contract.

Your rights at work do not depend on your visa

Many workers stay quiet because they think a visa holder has fewer rights. That is not how the law works in either country.

In Australia

The Fair Work Ombudsman says visa holders and migrant workers have the same workplace rights and protections as all other employees in Australia, including pay, leave, protection from discrimination and final pay. Its page for visa holders and migrants is worth reading before your first day.

Most employees' minimum wage is set by the award for their industry or occupation, and the National Employment Standards (NES) are a floor that no award, contract or agreement can go below. Full-time and part-time employees get 4 weeks of paid annual leave a year and 10 days of paid sick and carer's leave.

If you want to see how these rules turn into real money, our guide to an Australian salary in peso terms walks through the minimum wage and the 482 pay floor.

In New Zealand

Immigration New Zealand says everyone in New Zealand, including migrants, has the same minimum employment rights, including paid holidays and sick leave. From 1 April 2026 the adult minimum wage is $23.95 per hour before tax ($958 for a 40-hour week). Eligible employees get 10 days of paid sick leave a year, and 4 weeks of paid annual holidays after 12 months of continuous employment.

New Zealand employers also cannot charge you fees for a job or make you pay any of their recruitment costs, even through a third party. If someone in New Zealand asks you to "pay back" your recruitment, that is a problem to report, not a debt.

The fear that keeps workers silent: "they will cancel my visa"

This is the threat Filipino workers hear most, and the Fair Work Ombudsman answers it directly. An employer can't cancel a worker's visa. Only the Department of Home Affairs can grant, refuse or cancel visas, and contacting the Fair Work Ombudsman will not get your visa cancelled.

Your job and your visa are still linked, though. On a Skills in Demand visa (subclass 482) you may work only in the occupation you were nominated for and only for the business that nominated you (or, in some circumstances, an associated entity). Leaving that job is a visa question as well as a work question, so get advice before you resign. In Australia, check that anyone helping you is on the Register of Migration Agents; in New Zealand, anyone giving immigration advice must be licensed by the Immigration Advisers Authority unless exempt.

Two more rules protect you from a common kind of pressure:

• The sponsoring employer must pay all the costs of becoming a sponsor and nominating you, and cannot pass them on to you or your family.
• It is illegal for a person to pay an employer to sponsor them for a visa, including through salary deductions. Doing so can lead to visa refusal or cancellation, fines or imprisonment.

If an employer is taking money from your wages "for the visa", write it down and talk to the Fair Work Ombudsman. Our guide to the 482 visa salary requirement shows what your contract should say before you sign, and the Skills in Demand (482) visa guide explains the rest of the visa.

MWO, DMW, OWWA or Fair Work: which office does what

Fair Work Ombudsman: problems with the job itself

Wages, hours, payslips, leave, final pay and discrimination are Australian workplace law. The Fair Work Ombudsman is the office for these. If English is hard for you, use the interpreter route in the table above.

Migrant Workers Office: help as a Filipino worker abroad

An MWO is a Migrant Workers Office of the DMW abroad. The DMW is mandated to facilitate the overseas employment and reintegration of Filipino workers, and the MWO is its office near you. In Australia that is MWO Australia at the Philippine Embassy in Yarralumla, Canberra. In New Zealand it is MWO New Zealand at the Philippine Embassy in Wellington. MWO New Zealand also verifies contracts for workers who changed employers there.

DMW and OWWA: your home-side safety net

The DMW handles the employment side of working abroad, and lists the Emergency Hotline 1348. OWWA handles welfare, and its website also lists 1348. Your OWWA membership stays active until your employment contract expires or two years from contract effectivity, whichever comes first, so check it is still valid. You can renew through the OWWA Mobile App or at overseas jobsites. Our guide to OWWA membership in Australia and New Zealand covers who pays and how renewal works.

New Zealand: official channels only

DMW Advisory No. 17, Series of 2025 advised OFWs in New Zealand to deal only with official INZ channels and the Migrant Workers Office, and to watch for suspicious job offers or immigration services. Official INZ email addresses end with immigration.govt.nz or mbie.govt.nz, and you can check that a visa is real with INZ's Visa Verification service. See INZ's page on protecting yourself from immigration scams.

Step by step: what to do when something goes wrong at work

1. Write it down the same day. Dates, hours worked, what was said and who was there, in your own phone or notebook.
2. Keep your papers safe. Copies of your contract, visa grant and payslips, somewhere your employer cannot reach. Your passport stays with you.
3. Check your pay against the rules. Pay slips must be given within 1 working day of pay day; compare them with your award or the minimum wage.
4. Call the right office. Pay and conditions: the Fair Work Ombudsman. Welfare or contract trouble as an OFW: your MWO. An emergency: DMW 1348.
5. Get visa advice before you quit. Speak to a registered migration agent (Australia) or a licensed immigration adviser (New Zealand) before you resign.
6. Plan your next job calmly. If you move to another sponsoring employer, update your CV with your local experience.

For that last step, Build AI CV can turn your local work experience into a clear English CV quickly. Optional: a verified Talent Tabloid profile lets employers check your experience and can help your application stand out. When you are ready to look, PinoyAbroad lists only roles where the employer is prepared to sponsor a visa, for example community services jobs and IT and technology jobs.

When the problem started before you left: recruiters back home

Sometimes the trouble began with a recruiter in the Philippines: a fee you should never have paid, or a promise that did not match your contract. Report illegal recruitment to the DMW's Migrant Workers Protection Bureau on 87221192 or at mwpb@dmw.gov.ph. You can also check an agency's status (for example Valid License, Expired or Cancelled) in the DMW directory of licensed recruitment agencies.

For New Zealand, a POEA advisory of 19 December 2014 said licensed agencies may not charge placement fees for New Zealand jobs. If you paid one, keep the receipt. Our guide to direct hire Facebook scams shows the pattern the DMW warned about, and checking the accredited employer in New Zealand explains how to look a business up before you sign. This plain guide to the pay, leave and help visa holders can claim in Australia goes deeper into the Australian side.

Common mistakes Filipino workers make when they need help

• Waiting too long. Hoping unpaid hours will be fixed "next pay" while records get lost.
• Believing the visa threat. Only Home Affairs can cancel an Australian visa, and calling the Fair Work Ombudsman will not get a visa cancelled.
• Paying to keep the job. Money back to the employer "for sponsorship", including through salary deductions, is illegal and puts your own visa at risk.
• Taking advice from Facebook groups. The DMW has warned these groups were not created or endorsed by it.
• Letting OWWA lapse. Renew it while things are calm.
• Resigning first, asking later. On a 482 visa, leaving the job affects the visa.

Frequently asked questions

Can my employer in Australia cancel my visa if I complain about my pay?

No. The Fair Work Ombudsman says an employer can't cancel a worker's visa: only the Department of Home Affairs can grant, refuse or cancel visas. Contacting the Fair Work Ombudsman about your pay or conditions will not get your visa cancelled.

What is the phone number of the Migrant Workers Office in Australia?

The DMW's directory lists MWO Australia at the Philippine Embassy, 1 Moonah Place, Yarralumla, A.C.T. 2600, telephone (612) 6273-8882, email mwo_australia@dmw.gov.ph. In New Zealand the office is at the Philippine Embassy in Wellington, telephone +64-4-2601161.

Is DMW 1348 the same number as the OWWA hotline?

Both agencies list 1348: the DMW contact page calls it its Emergency Hotline, and the OWWA website lists 1348 as its contact number. The DMW office directory also gives the hotline numbers 8722-11-44 and 8722-11-55 and the email feedback@dmw.gov.ph.

I don't speak English well. Can I still get help from Fair Work?

Yes. Call the Translating and Interpreting Service on 131 450 and ask them to call the Fair Work Ombudsman on 13 13 94 for you. You can then explain your problem in your own language through the interpreter.

Key takeaways

• Pay and workplace problems in Australia go to the Fair Work Ombudsman: 13 13 94, or TIS on 131 450 for an interpreter.
• As an OFW, your nearest Philippine help is the MWO at the embassy in Canberra or Wellington, plus DMW and OWWA on 1348.
• Visa holders have the same workplace rights as local workers in Australia and New Zealand.
• An employer cannot cancel your Australian visa, and paying for sponsorship is illegal.
• Get registered or licensed visa advice before you leave a sponsored job.

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