Thousands of restaurateurs turn out the lights
Tuesday, 6 July 2021
Seeing what’s on their plates would have been tricky for a couple of minutes for diners at restaurants across the country on Tuesday.
Thousands of restaurateurs turned off the lights in protest at the Government’s immigration policy, which the Restaurant Association says excludes the hospitality industry from employer-assisted visa extensions.
The campaign organisers called the Restaurant Association protest a “lights out moment” to illustrate what New Zealand would look like if inadequate staffing meant restaurants and cafes had to close more often.
Across New Zealand at 11.30am on Tuesday, lights were switched off at hundreds of premises for a couple of minutes.
At the Bread and Butter Bakery and Cafe in the Auckland suburb of Grey Lynn, customers were not forewarned about the plunge into darkness. But owner Isabel Pasch explained.
**READ MORE:
* Table for one: The rise of the solo diner
* Restaurants plan to switch off the lights in protest over staff shortages that are 'beyond critical'
**
“We have a critical staff shortage, and it is very difficult to find staff. If someone leaves, and I advertise, it is very hard to even get someone to come to an interview,” Pasch said.
“We are very worried in hospitality that some of the rules that the Government are proposing will make staff shortages a lot worse. This will probably mean that the lights will go off for some businesses.
“There just aren't too many New Zealanders that are unemployed and looking at jobs. How are our businesses going to grow without staff? Some will go under; some will go sideways. It is not a recipe for success.”
Nationwide, hundreds more restaurants and cafes planned to participate in the second 7pm lights-out protest.
Restaurant Association chief executive Marisa Bidois said the situation for restaurateurs struggling to staff their businesses was critical. She said most of the temporary visa-holders were on essential skills work visas and there was still no plan to extend these.
“We have businesses across the country reducing hours, changing decades-long operating schedules, and closing whole services in order to cobble together a semblance of operations and give their existing teams a break,” Bidois said.
“With the Government’s recent immigration reset announcement, there is palpable fear that their approach to ideological-based policy could see our industry scythed once again – but this time it will be Government-induced.”
The association's national president, Mike Egan, who owns Monsoon Poon in Wellington, said he wanted to inform his guests of the situation all hospitality businesses would be in because of the lengthy process of trying to renew existing visas.
‘Months of lobbying’
The Restaurant Association reports a skills shortage at levels never seen before. More than 90 per cent of the industry group’s members say it is difficult to recruit for mid- to senior-level positions.
Under normal circumstances, about 30 per cent of the sector is made up of those on temporary work visas, and in some cases that figure is closer to 60 per cent.
The industry says it has about 15 per cent of the workforce on temporary work visas.
“After months of lobbying on this issue we’re pleased to see that Government is finally listening with yesterday’s announcement to extend the working holiday visas, but this does not go far enough.”
The association wants “urgent” additional visa extensions for employer-assisted work visa-holders currently in New Zealand to allow employers to retain their existing migrant workforce.
It wants the Government to allow border exceptions for other critical workers from other industries, such as hospitality, where there is a proven need and to extend the number of working hours permitted for those on student visas.
Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi said, in response to the protest, that the Government regularly reviewed border settings and made adjustments where and when it was possible. It had extended about 10,000 working holiday and supplementary seasonal work visas, which were due to expire at the end of the year, for a further six months.
“We also gave open work rights to supplementary seasonal employer work scheme visa-holders, allowing them to work in any sector, including hospitality,” Faafoi said.
The minister said that while the Government didn’t extend essential skills visas last month, the duration of essential skills visas for jobs paid below the median wage would be increased from six to 12 months, to align with pre-Covid settings.
“This provides more certainty to workers and their employers that workers whose skills are still needed in New Zealand can remain here, subject to labour market testing to prove there are no New Zealanders available to fill the role,” he said.
“Since Covid-19, Immigration New Zealand [INZ] has continued to receive many work visa applications from individuals on shore and, while INZ aims to process these as quickly as possible, I understand that time frames for some work visa applications have increased.
“I understand the impact that these time frames can have on businesses and employers, particularly during these uncertain times, and I am advised that INZ is working hard to reduce the delays.”