8.5 Right to an effective remedy and access to justice The right to access an effective legal remedy if your human rights are violated is an important principle in human rights.112 The Commission spoke with workers who had negative experiences when seeking resolution through the migrant exploitation hotline and with labour inspectors. As well as concerns with government agencies, migrant workers face other barriers, for example workers in informal employment did not think they could practically report employment issues given their immigration status and concerns about deportation. Other workers feared employer threats or potential retribution (detailed above) and some workers expressed a lack of understanding of their rights and how remedies could be accessed and/or a general lack of knowledge and support in navigating the legal system. INZ promotes a free phone number that migrant workers can use to report migrant exploitation known as the ‘migrant exploitation hotline’. Reports of migrant exploitation can make a worker eligible to receive a Migrant Exploitation 112 28 Protection Visa. This visa is valid for six months or the remaining time of the visa, whichever is shorter (with a potential for an extension). Two workers who reported exploitation to the hotline were critical of investigations into their complaints. One worker described it as “no help” and both felt their complaints were not adequately investigated or followed up. Neither was hopeful they would receive the compensation or wage arrears they considered was owed. Both were sceptical that the employer would cease trading and one said the person that had exploited them was involved with multiple other accredited companies. Other workers told the Commission they had experienced migrant exploitation but had decided not to report it to the hotline for various reasons, including lack of confidence that they would receive support, not wanting to transition to the Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa, and fears of deportation. Some workers expressed a concern about transitioning from the multi-year AEWV visa to a six-month or the remaining time of the visa, whichever is shorter visa. See, for example, article 2.3 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme in Aotearoa New Zealand: A Human Rights Review