Like many international students, Pranay Alawala came to Australia with a dream of completing his masters before falling victim to what lawyers say is one of the country's worse employment scandals.
The former Brisbane 7-Eleven shop assistant was underpaid almost $30,000 by his employer but did not feel safe reporting what was happening to him.
"I worked day and night like a slave - he treated me like a slave," the 25-year-old told reporters on Monday.
"It's been like a nightmare."
Law firm Maurice Blackburn has taken up Mr Alawala's case and is offering free legal services to 7-Eleven workers.
It says the federal government is not doing enough to crack down on the exploitation of international students.
"The silence from the government has been deafening," the firm's employment law specialist Josh Bornstein said on Monday.
"It's one of the most disturbing employment scandals we've seen in a very long time and there has been absolutely no commitment - nothing - forthcoming from the outgoing minister, Tony Abbott, or anything else."
The government is being urged to grant a visa amnesty to workers at the convenience store chain who fear deportation if they complain or admit to working more hours than allowed.
"It's not only me, there are a lot of students," Mr Alawala says.
The firm, and consumer advocate Michael Fraser, say they have uncovered widespread rorting that suggests tens of thousands of 7-Eleven workers have been ripped off by franchise owners who doctored employment records.
"I cannot find, to this day, anybody that's been paid the correct wages," Mr Fraser says.
Over a decade, that could mean workers are owed millions of unpaid wages and entitlements.
A joint Fairfax-Four Corners investigation in August found up to two-thirds of 7-Eleven stores could be underpaying workers.
The convenience chain has around 600 stores that employ about 4000 people across Australia.
The company has established an independent panel, headed by former competition watchdog boss Allan Fels, to investigate claims of underpayment.
The exploitation of international students in Australia is a disgrace, particularly in light of attempts to encourage more overseas enrolments, Mr Bornstein says.
"This is the latest embarrassment for Australia."
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