Erica Stanford has indicated immigration rules for entry-level workers in certain industries could be relaxed, months after she tightened the screws on low-skilled migrants coming into the country.
The immigration minister announced a slew of changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) five months back to curtail what she said were unsustainably high migration levels.
Most of the changes aimed to shave off the number of migrants in low-skilled jobs–Level 4 and 5 occupations. But she has now outlined sectors where the government is exploring the possibility of relaxing some restrictions.
“I am keenly aware there is a need for entry level workers in certain sectors and in certain regions where there just aren’t the kiwis to do the work,” she said during a speech at the Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) on August 16, 2024.
“I have already engaged with sectors like dairy, wine, seafood, manufacturing, meat processing, forestry, and tourism to get a good understanding of what we needed to achieve.”
Her announcement came days after she told The Indian Weekender the government is looking to ease some pain caused by the changes to the country’s main work visa to make the new settings “work for everybody”.
Speaking at the EMA conference, Stanford said “we began our work to overhaul the AEWV work visa” soon after the changes were put in place, in order to ensure “it is fit for purpose and works for you”.
“While decisions have not yet been taken, I want to give you an idea of the direction of travel so that you know we are carefully considering the needs of business.
“This phase of work is intended to result in an AEWV visa that is more nuanced, flexible and responsive to the differing needs of businesses in certain sectors and regions.”
Among the new provisions some business owners have taken objection to is a rule that requires most low-skilled overseas workers to leave the country after two years of work and wait a year to reapply for a visa.
They point out a lack of a residency pathway for these employees will lead to high attrition, taking away trained workforce they need on an ongoing basis.
The minister says immigration officials will soon begin work on engaging with key sectors and business associations to gather more information on their specific needs and ‘to test our proposals”.
Stanford says she has been working “very hard with my officials” to overhaul the AEWV visa and to address the concerns that have followed.
“We definitely will need to be more flexible with it to make sure that this is a visa that works for everybody. And so that's the work that I'm undertaking. I've taken that through.”