Migrants brought to Australia to work in agriculture have died of dehydration, after being poorly prepared for the climate and labour conditions, an inquiry has been told.

There have been 36 deaths among Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) workers from Vanuatu since 2020, Australian South Sea Islanders chair Emelda Davis said.

"People are dying from dehydration," Ms Davis told a NSW parliamentary inquiry examining the risks of modern slavery faced by migrant workers in rural areas on Friday.

"They don't comprehend you need to ... work in these conditions and have regular drinking water."

The inquiry has previously been told of the drowning death of seasonal worker Moken Maltungtung, from Vanuatu, on a northern NSW farm in early 2024.

The deaths of Tuota Kirition, from Kiribati, a

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