Migrants face double blow

Proposed wage limits and cuts to tourism and hospo jobs would hit aspiring Kiwis

Would-be migrants seeking to work and stay in New Zealand may be in for a double whammy under proposed changes to the essential skills visa policy.

Not only must they meet new income thresholds, but even if they were paid above the median Kiwi income of $48,859, pathways to residency have been cut to many tourism and hospitality occupations.

Massey University sociologist Paul Spoonley, an immigration expert, warns that the changes would have a huge impact for the industry.

They would be especially disruptive for ethnic and immigrant businesses. “The most important incentives, the opportunity to gain permanent residence, has gone.

“But equally important is the impact for employers in hospitality. “Some are going to struggle.” Pathways to residence in occupations such as hotel duty manager, senior cook, chef de partie, travel consultants and retail managers will be gone. Partners and children of people in those jobs would also be unable to work and study in New Zealand, unless they themselves met the requirements.

“Now, some of the skill level 2 and about half of skill level 3 hospitality jobs do not provide a transition to residence,” Spoonley said.

“It tightens the appeal and available labour for hospitality, and will create problems for those private training establishments that offer courses in hospitality.”

But he said it was also timely to ask if these low-level courses added value to the local economy.

Details have been distributed to those in the tourism and hospitality sector which intend to make a submission on the proposed changes.

Immigration policy director Shane Kinley said meetings were planned with groups such as Tourism Industry Aotearoa, Tourism Export Council, Tourism New Zealand, Backpacker, Youth and Adventure Association, Restaurant Association, Hospitality New Zealand and the Holiday Parks Association.

No comment would be made on feedback until after the consultation process finished on May 21, he said.

Tourism is now New Zealand’s top export earner, ahead of dairy.

Immigration said tourism and hospitality sector jobs tended to be low wage as a result of “high volume/proportion of low and semiskilled jobs”. But the industries have a high and growing demand for labour and skills.

As at March 2015, 29,000 out of 148,999 people employed in accommodation and food services were temporary migrants.

Celia Hay, director at New Zealand School of Food and Wine, said there was a “chronic lack of local staff” to do these jobs. “Kiwis are not doing them so how will the businesses cope especially in the provinces and Queenstown,” she said.

“We need more people in New Zealand, but diversity of ethnicity and skills is a positive.”

Hay, who has also been involved with Celia’s Pies, Hay’s Restaurant and the Banks Peninsula District Council, predicted an inflationary effect from an indirect rise in costs as a result of the changes.

“The simple fact remains that if these sectors are unable to hold their costs of labour, the price of buying an expertly made espresso, Thai takeaway or flavoursome pizza, will just go up.”

New Zealand First leader Winston Peters said restaurants employing foreign workers must be prepared to pay fair salaries.

Restaurant Association chief executive Marisa Bidois said it was looking into the proposed changes.