Immigration adjustments greeted warmly in Q’town
Chamber of Commerce chief executive Ruth Stokes said while businesses would be grateful for the exemption, it would mean some tough decisions for small business owners.
She suggested either there would be a return to the days where New Zealanders were paid less than overseas workers, or fair pay agreements would result in a 30% increase in minimum wage, presently set at $21.20 an hour.
‘‘April, 2023, is not a long time,’’ Ms Stokes said.
‘‘While it’s a window of affordability, there remains the issue of worker availability, and our relative attractiveness in the global market.’’ Erik’s
Fish & Chips owner Anna Arndt said while yesterday’s announcements were positive, there would be impacts on costs for consumers.
‘‘It is important to understand if we pay [migrant workers] $25, all the other staff we have will have to be paid more.
‘‘Just to cover costs, we will have to increase our prices . . . with all the other extra costs we now have such as 10 days’ sick leave, another public holiday [Matariki, on June 24] . . . plus very high inflation.’’