Distressing allegations domestic workers employed by foreign diplomats in some Canberra embassies have been treated like slaves highlight the fact Australia has some of the best labour laws in the world.
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Unfortunately, because of the conventions surrounding diplomatic immunity, authorities, including the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, are limited in what they can do when allegations of abuse are brought to their attention.
As a result the Salvation Army has been called on to help at least 20 allegedly exploited workers in recent years.
Individuals have said they were paid a pittance, forced to live in squalid conditions, denied freedom of movement and threatened with physical violence, termination and being sent home if they dared to complain.
While it seems hard to believe people could be treated in this way within a coo-ee of our national parliament this problem is not unique to Australia.
Similar abuses have made headlines in Canada, Ireland and Holland.
Class divisions in many parts of the world are far starker than in Australia. Wage scales are much lower and the gulf between the rich and the poor can be staggering.
Some diplomats arrive in Australia with little intention of paying the going rate for labour in the host country. This leads to usually successful attempts to subvert local labour laws, prevailing community standards and human rights expectations.
What such errant diplomats urgently need to accept is such arrangements are both morally repugnant and illegal here.
The Pakistani High Commission has declined to comment on allegations by a former worker, Shahid Mahmood, that he was forced to live in a storage basement in O'Malley for 19 months with no ventilation or air conditioning while being paid a pittance.
Mr Mahmood said that, in accordance with Australian law, he signed a contract guaranteeing he would receive a minimum wage of $640 a week but that the document was a sham.
The reality is that once inside the compound workers often have their passports taken away and see very little money.
While DFAT, which set up a working group to beef up protections in 2014, is right in saying its efforts have been hampered by diplomatic immunity, it is worth noting other countries have adopted creative approaches to get around the problem.
The Canadians have banned some errant embassies and high commissions from bringing in new private domestics.
The Dutch now insist private domestics collect their work visas in person. When they do so they are briefed on their rights and told what to do in the event they are underpaid, exploited or abused.
While neither of these steps is a silver bullet, they would at least make it harder for diplomats to get away with exploitative practices that make a mockery of this community's commitment to egalitarianism, the rule of law and the idea of a "fair go" for all.
