Bosses could be thrown behind bars for workplace deaths and wage theft if the Labor government gets re-elected at the November Victorian election.
Premier Daniel Andrews announced the major reforms in his speech to party faithful at the Labor state conference on Saturday.
"If an employer's negligence causes death, they will be held to account," Mr Andrews told the conference.
"That doesn't just mean thousands of dollars in fines, that means millions and it'll mean jail time - up to 20 years."
There has been 234 workplace deaths in the past decade in Victoria, Mr Andrews said.
Employers whose negligence leads to the death or an employee or a site visitors will face fines of almost $16 million and individuals will face up to 20 years jail.
WorkSafe will be responsible for prosecuting employers.
Mr Andrews also announced that employers would face jail time for wage theft.
"Whether you're a convenience store chain or a celebrity chef, if you deliberately and dishonestly underpay your workers, if you deny or deprive them of what is rightfully theirs, you will face jail," he said.
Employers will face a maximum jail time of 10 years and businesses could be fined up to $950,000.
The legal process for ripped-off workers to recover wages will be fast-tracked, with lower court fees, cases heard within 30 days and a simpler process.
Hundreds of Labor delegates are at Moonee Valley Racecourse from Saturday morning for the annual event.
On Sunday the conference will also debate moving Australia Day from January 26 to May 9, which marks the date federal parliament first met.
It comes after three Melbourne councils - Moreland, Yarra and Darebin - stopped referring to January 26 as Australia Day. The federal government stripped the latter two of their ability to host citizenship ceremonies.
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