Immigration changes target regions
The Government plans to introduce regional skills shortage lists to make it easier for migrants to fill job vacancies in regional areas.
Announcing proposed changes to employer-assisted temporary work visas yesterday, Immigration Minister Iain LeesGalloway said regional skills shortage lists would replace the current system of essential skills in demand lists.
He said the new approach would better reflect skill shortages in regions and provide temporary migrants with a more accurate idea of regional opportunities.
Lees-Galloway announced the proposed changes in Ashburton, where a recent report found there were 500 unfilled jobs in the area, which was holding back the local economy. MidCanterbury had traditionally relied on migrant labour to fill vacancies, as population growth in the area had not kept up with the demand for workers.
The proposed changes will be welcome news to regions struggling to find Kiwis to fill jobs. In June last year, Canterbury’s mayors wrote to then-Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse asking for the Government to place less focus on ‘‘Auckland issues’’ and more on regional needs when it came to immigration policy.
The Government’s proposals include sector agreements for industries that rely heavily on migrant labour.
The agreements will help businesses in need of workers to more easily source migrant labour in return for commitments by the sector to employ and train more New Zealanders in the long-term, Lees-Galloway said.
New incentives and support for businesses to employ more New Zealanders have been proposed.
Lees-Galloway said the current one-size-fits-all approach had been failing regions and industries with acute labour needs, while at the same time loading pressure on Auckland’s infrastructure.
There were too few checks and balances on employers hiring migrants, which had led to increased migrant exploitation. New employer checks will help combat migrant exploitation.
Consultation on the proposed temporary work visa changes is open until March 18, 2019, with an announcement on final decisions to be made by mid2019.