Worker visa extensions 'not a moment too soon', says Business NZ
Friday, 16 July 2021
An announcement from Immigration Minister Kris Faafoi on Friday that Essential Skills Visas will be extended for a further two years has been welcomed by the hospitality sector and business lobbies.
Restaurant Association chief executive Marisa Bidois said that after months of advocacy and recent collective action, the decision would bring relief to many operators, who had battled with uncertainty for the last year-and-a-half.
Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope said it came “not a moment too soon” and asked the Government to consider extending all other visa categories as soon as possible.
Faafoi said the Government was increasing the duration of some Essential Skills Visas and streamlining the application process while border restrictions remained in place.
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* Skifield echoes call for Immigration NZ to let skilled workers through
**
The length of the visa for workers earning below the median wage would be doubled to two years, allowing 18,000 workers, primarily employed in the tourism, hospitality and retail industries, to stay longer in the country.
The process of reapplying for a skilled work visa would also be simplified for the country's 57,000 skilled visa holders. For workers seeking to retain their existing job, employers would not have to convince Immigration NZ that there were no suitable New Zealand citizens or residents available for the role, and medical and police certificates would not be required.
“These changes complement the recent extension we granted for around 10,000 Working Holiday and Supplementary Seasonal Employment visa holders,” Faafoi said.
The changes would kick in from Monday, July 19.
The association was in the middle of its Reset Campaign, two-month’s of collective action from the hospitality sector following the Government’s immigration reset announcement.
On Tuesday July 6, thousands of restaurants and cafes around the country turned off the lights for two minutes to protest about how the skills shortage was affecting businesses.
“We’re pleased the Government has listened to our concerns and acknowledged the pressures felt by businesses across the country, while Covid-19 border restrictions remain in place.
“We have said from the outset, modernising the training and employment pathways within our sector is critically overdue. The extension will give many of our businesses some breathing space, while we build our future workforce.”
The association looked forward to meeting with ministers in the coming weeks to discuss the future of the sector, Bidois said.
Employers and Manufacturers Association chief executive Brett O’Riley said the move was a step in the right direction.
'Our members have been telling us they’ve been losing people to their home countries because they haven’t had applications processed quickly enough, or had any certainty.”
The EMA supported the Government’s longer term vision to build a more self-reliant labour market, but said migrants were a part of society and would always be needed, he said.
The EMA anticipated hearing more about changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa, which had been delayed until the middle of next year and said it supported calls for an amnesty for Pacific Island overstayers to participate in the workforce and education, he said.
Federated Farmers immigration spokesman Chris Lewis said the organisation was pleased the Government had recognised the need to extend the visas for workers who were highly valued by the dairy industry, particularly for the calving season which was just getting underway.
“We don’t want these people taking their good skills and work habits and exiting the country because of visa uncertainty, and this is an important step to help keeping them here. We are doing what we can to attract Kiwis to the industry, but all provincial employers feel like they are fighting over the same scraps of the labour force pie at the moment.”
Lewis welcomed the delay in moving to a new visa system in which employers and workers would have to use the Accredited Employer Work Visa. Farmers and workers had enough to worry about at the moment without having to get their heads around the new system, he said.
Meat Industry Association chief executive Sirma Karapeeva said the decision meant that 100 halal butchers who would have otherwise have lost their right to stay in New Zealand could now keep their jobs.
Halal butchers were critical to supporting employment for thousands of others in the regions. Without them there was a risk that the value of each processed carcass could drop, with knock on effects for the sector, Karapeeva said.
Halal butchers generated more than $3.3 million in value-added certified meat products, she said.
There were ongoing challenges to recruit enough halal butchers because of the relatively small Muslim population and the industry had to recruit from overseas.
“That’s why we’re asking the Government to consider a more permanent solution that would facilitate the entry of migrant halal butchers such as a special visa category for halal butchers,” Karapeeva said.
Tourism Industry Aotearoa chief executive Chris Roberts said the sector was also delighted to hear the news, as accommodation, hospitality and transport operators were struggling to fill vacancies.
“Employers don’t want to lose the great people they already have. And today’s announcement gives skilled and trained migrant workers who have chosen New Zealand as their temporary home some security.”
Roberts said the industry also welcomed an announcement from Tourism Stuart Nash on funding for local council infrastructure projects, which would be used to upgrade local amenities, which would serve locals and visitors alike.
The tourism industry was still a long way from recovery, he said.