Migrants want to make Chch home
Two Christchurch migrant rebuild workers are happy the Government is giving them a better chance to call the South Island their permanent home.
This week, Prime Minister John Key announced plans to triple the number of points received toward’s residency applications if they accepted a job offer outside of Auckland.
Another measure promised to offer residency to 600 existing South Island migrants on temporary work visas if they committed their future to the South Island.
Key said many of these migrants had been in the country for several years and were valu- able members of the community.
About 5000 rebuild-specific temporary work visas have been approved since 2011.
They included those for Filipino Joseph Bautista and Englishman Ryan Cooper, who work for Corbel Construction.
Bautista moved to Christchurch in February 2013 with his wife and three children. They call the city home and were keen to eventually become citizens.
‘‘I planned to move here for a greener pasture for my family, for a brighter future because back there in the Philippines it’s not as good,’’ Bautista said.
His wife worked at a retirement village and his 16-year-old son attended Shirley Boys’ High School, while his daughters, aged 9 and 6, were at school in Woolston.
‘‘Back in the Philippines for education you must pay. Here you can put your children in school for free. It’s quite a saving for me and also the education here is quite high compared to the Philippines.’’
Bautista was applying for residency with the help of Corbel Construction. He hoped the changes announced by the government would allow more Filipinos to stay in Christchurch permanently.
Ryan Cooper, 21, has lived in Christchurch for about six months on a year-long working holiday visa. He came on the recommendation of his cousin, who has worked in the city for 31⁄ years.
Cooper said he was tempted by job opportunities in Christchurch compared to his home town, Sheffield. He enjoyed the more relaxed New Zealand lifestyle. ‘‘People aren’t in a mad rush to do things.’’
It was rewarding to help the city get back on its feet. ‘‘There’s always something to do where you can say at the end of it, look, I’ve helped towards getting somebody back in their home. There’s no better feeling, really, as what we do in construction,’’ Cooper said.
He was applying for a visa extension and is considering settling here permanently.
Corbel Construction human resources manager Jane Howat said companies had a responsibility to help migrant workers settle here.