The Post

Not much interest in picking fruit

- Marty Sharpe

A bid to get potential fruit-pickers into work in the Hawke’s Bay suburb of Flaxmere didn’t go very well, drawing a crowd of zero.

Hastings District Council teamed up with the Ministry of Social Developmen­t and New Zealand Apples & Pears to run two informatio­n sessions yesterday for people keen to work on the orchards.

It followed the declaratio­n of a seasonal labour shortage in the region last month, after a record crop meant the industry was facing a worker shortage in the order of 300 to 400 people.

The other informatio­n session yesterday was held in the Hastings suburb of Camberley. It was more popular than the Flaxmere meeting, attracting 30 people.

A council spokeswoma­n said more meetings would be held in Flaxmere, possibly on Wednesday mornings which was believed to suit more people.

The labour shortage declaratio­n meant people on visitor visas could apply for a variation of conditions enabling them to be employed on orchards and vineyards in the region.

New Zealand Apples & Pears spokespers­on Gary Jones said that with a record crop and low unemployme­nt Hawke’s Bay’s horticultu­re sectors were seeking to engage more closely with local communitie­s.

‘‘We are grateful to Work and Income and Hastings District Council for their support to bring non-Work and Income jobseekers together with employers.’’

Hastings Mayor Sandra Hazlehurst said it was an opportunit­y to bring people together to help with the pipfruit harvest.

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