Desperate migrants: ‘Here is our home too’
They can’t stay. They can’t return. What is to become of the thousands of unemployed Queenstown workers? Debbie Jamieson and Jo McKenzieMcLean report.
Desperate migrants are seeking a relaxation of visa rules to allow them to seek new jobs as the coronavirus crisis puts thousands out of work.
Samantha Korale Kankanange has invested seven years of his life in Queenstown working as a chef.
He lives frugally and sends most of his money home to Sri Lanka to support his wife Inoka and 10-yearold daughter Savini.
His dream is to bring them to New Zealand. To date, his salary has not reached the Immigration New Zealand threshold to apply for a family visa. Now it appears his dream has been shattered. The hotel where he worked has slashed its workforce.
He has no job and has moved into a broken-down caravan to save money. In a few weeks’ time, his government subsidy will run dry.
‘‘I don’t want to go back to Sri Lanka. There’s no jobs there.’’
His current visa requires him to work as a chef in the Otago region, something that is proving difficult, but he is desperate.
‘‘It feels a really sad situation in my life but I can find a job going around New Zealand. I’m a hard worker. I can work any job.’’
Ryann Lourenco, a former Queenstown chef, says migrants want to support themselves and New Zealand’s economic recovery. However, visa restrictions often tied migrants to an employer that could no longer pay them.
‘‘Many of us have lost our jobs. Now we are hearing that we ‘should go home’. The problem is that here is our home as well.’’
Lourenco, 33, has lived in Queenstown for three years but moved to Wellington before lockdown. His petition seeking a relaxation of the visa rules has been signed by nearly 3000 people.
‘‘Many of us have built up our life here; many of us have helped this lovely country grow with our hard work through years and years. Many of us have abdicated our life at our home country to have the same rights as any human being should – that is quality of life. So we shouldn’t hear that here isn’t our home.’’
An Immigration NZ spokesperson says the agency is aware of the problems in Queenstown and is planning to have a physical presence in the town soon to provide support.
The Government is looking at options for temporary work visa holders and will make decisions ‘‘as soon as possible.’’
English migrant Luisa Cardona has fallen in love with Queenstown since arriving in December 2017. ‘‘I still remember landing in Queenstown with my friend and we were just in awe. We couldn’t believe how beautiful it was,’’ she says.
‘‘I totally fell in love with Queenstown. I was hooked and I didn’t want to leave.’’
She made friends, was promoted from her job as a receptionist at a hotel to the marketing department, and bought furniture for her flat. Life was good until Covid-19 hit.
Last week, the 32-year-old learnt she would lose her job and the landlord wanted to lift her rent to its pre-Covid level. Her work visa bonds her to the workplace that cannot afford to employ her.
‘‘I want to stay in Queenstown. This is where my life is. This is where my chosen family is.’’ Cardona is one of more than 6500 people who have sought welfare from Queenstown Lakes District Council. The council has already distributed nearly 4800 food vouchers worth more than $1.6 million while Volunteering Central manages 130 volunteers to support those in need and connect them with other agencies.
Assistance is also coming from the Government’s Civil Defence Emergency Fund, which is receiving about 250 requests for help from Queenstown people every day.
Queenstown Lakes mayor Jim Boult says the town is in ‘‘dire straits’’ and every time he thinks it cannot get worse, it does.
‘‘The unemployment level is horrendous. The current estimate is about 8000 people [will lose jobs] and I fear that after the supplementary wage finishes, a lot more people won’t have a job.’’
Many are young people on working holidays who will likely return home when flights are available. Others have lived in Queenstown for many years, their children were born there, and they suddenly have no income.
‘‘They regard themselves as Kiwis . . . I don’t think, in all consciousness, we can say to them to leave the country.’’
He agrees relaxing visa rules will help but won’t solve the bigger employment problem. ‘‘The best solution is to get the economy running again.’’
That means promoting domestic tourism, getting more flights into Queenstown, opening the transTasman bubble before the ski season, and getting government funding for large-scale infrastructure projects.
Yesterday, the Government announced it would spend $1.4m to support local worker redeployment and labour market activity in the Queenstown Lakes District. That could include creating conservation jobs and agricultural positions.
Immigration Minister Iain LeesGalloway says the scheme can help redeploy migrant workers if they are doing the same role with a different employer, or doing a different role with the same employer at present.
They will still need to seek a variation to their visa conditions.
But SEA International immigration adviser Lina Gonzalez says there is a ‘‘huge’’ humanitarian crisis facing New Zealand, with 350,000 migrant workers needing their visas extended over the next few months. ‘‘Immigration New Zealand does not have the capacity to assess each individual.’’
Migrants are losing their jobs at a rapid pace, and after the wage subsidy runs out they will have no way to pay for food, rent or other bills. Many have children to support, she says.
People are also stuck in New Zealand on visitor visas.
‘‘Because New Zealand’s borders are closed and many countries aren’t talking about opening borders until September or October, they are stuck here, can’t work and are running out of savings to survive.
‘‘We are talking about 56,000 visitor visa holders at the moment.’’
Another problem is migrants who travelled overseas before lockdown and are now stuck overseas while still having to pay rent and bills in New Zealand, Gonzalez says.
Luz Guevara, 25, of Peru, a trained high school teacher in her native country, had been working as a housemaid in Queenstown for the past two years. Last week, she and 55 colleagues lost their jobs.
She also needs a different visa to be able to find another job.
‘‘A migrant worker’s life isn’t easy. Most are really wonderful, they have degrees back home, they are professionals and have great ideas and are really hard workers,’’ she says.
‘‘We are working here honestly, following New Zealand rules but most [migrant workers] feel [New Zealand] doesn’t want us any more.’’