Migrant News Vol 15 No 3, 2022

More documents

Recommendations

Info

P a g e 0 6 w e b s i t e : w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z I w w w . f a c e b o o k . c o m / w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z I TWITTER : www.twittercom/migrantnews Thousands of extra workers to be allowed into New Zealand The government will allow some sectors to pay skilled migrant workers less than the new median wage requirements in a bid to address workplace shortages across the country. It is also doubling the Working Holiday Scheme cap for 2022/23 and extending holiday makers' visas. Announcing the changes, Immigration Minister Michael Wood said they were aimed at providing immediate relief to those businesses hardest-hit by the global worker shortage. "We have listened to the concerns of these sectors, and worked with them to take practicable steps to unlock additional labour," he said. "We know these measures will help fill skills gaps, as businesses work towards more productive and resilient ways of operating." Businesses that were hiring skilled migrant workers in a number of key sectors would be exempt, for a limited period, from the new median wage requirements. Wood said this would keep wage requirements during a transition period more in line with what they were under the old immigration settings. "When we launched the immigration rebalance we heard from key sectors they would need time to transition to the new rules," Wood said. "We have worked urgently alongside industry to develop sector agreements for the aged care, seafood, meat processing, construction and snow and adventure tourism industries that will be put in place from today." Each of the agreements also included expectations for improvement, Wood said, including the implementation of workforce transition plans and industry transformation plans. "Performance against these will be monitored and feed into reviews and decisions about future access to migrants below the median wage," Wood said. To address the shortage of casual workers more generally, the government would temporarily increase access to the Working Holiday Scheme which it said would allow 12,000 additional working holiday makers to come to the country. Those already here on working holiday visas expiring between 26 August of this year and 31 May 2023 would have them extended by six months. And people who previously held a working holiday visa but who missed out on travelling to New Zealand due to the pandemic would also be issued with new visas from October, allowing them to enter New Zealand by 31 January 2023 and remain in the country for 12 months. Covid-19 had brough the world to a Immigration Minister Michael Wood (photo: Twitter) "standstill", Wood said, and that was particularly being felt by the hospitality and tourism sectors, which traditionally relied on international workers. "Since our borders have fully reopened we are seeing the return of working holiday makers with approximately 4,000 already in-country and over 21,000 have had their application to work here approved," he said. "These changes will have a positive impact on the workforce, and will make the most of the increase in working holiday makers we expect to welcome during the peak summer season." Published with special permission from RNZ. It's now illegal to ignore 'Do Not Knock' stickers Changes to the Fair Trading Act, which have come into force, mean door-todoor traders who ignore a ‘Do Not Knock’ sticker risk fines of up to $30,000. In addition to imposing fines, the courts can also order the cancellation or variation of a sales agreement, as well as compensation if an uninvited seller ignores a sticker or a direction not to enter a property. “This is a great win for consumers,” said Jon Duffy, Consumer NZ Chief Executive. “We have been calling for these changes to the Fair Trading Act since 2014, when we first launched our campaign. Since then, we have distributed more than half a million stickers to consumers to keep unwanted sellers away,” he said. “Over the years we have heard terrible stories of pushy salespeople hounding householders to buy products they don’t want or need. In some cases, people have even purchased products just to get rid of the seller. “We’ve also heard stories of sellers ignoring the stickers, so it’s great ignoring a ‘Do Not Knock’ sticker or instruction to stay away will now have serious financial implications for the trader on the doorstep.” You don’t need a sticker to benefit from these new consumer protections. If you tell a seller to stay away from your house, they must do as they’re told for two years. If they don’t do as they’re told, or they ignore your sticker, you can complain to the Commerce Commission. How to get a 'Do Not Knock' sticker Consumer members can request a sticker through the form on Consumer’s website. If you’re not a Consumer member, you can get a sticker from any Resene ColorShop or store that sells Resene paints. Alternatively, you can make your own sign or download a printable version of the sticker.
w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z I w w w . f a c e b o o k . c o m / w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z I email: migrantnews@xtra.co.nz P a g e 0 7 The implementation of the Government’s immigration rebalance is progressing well, with details released recently on how highly skilled migrants, including those with roles on the Green List, can apply to gain residence once they have arrived in New Zealand, Michael Wood the Minister of Immigration, announced. “The Government is focused on helping to Govt opens three new skilled residence pathways address shortages in highly skilled areas and speeding up our economic growth. Key to this is having clear pathways that migrants can use to gain residency,” Michael Wood said. “From 5 September, skilled workers in specified occupations will be able to apply for the Straight to Residence pathway. Skilled migrants on the ‘Work to Residence’ and ‘Highly Paid’ resident pathways will be able to apply from 29 September 2023, once they have obtained 24 months of acceptable work in New Zealand. “The Green List covers areas where New Zealand has a skills shortage and these pathways will incentivise and attract high skilled migrants to New Zealand, by providing a new streamlined process to achieve residency for those globally hard to fill roles. This is the latest step in delivering a rebalanced immigration system that is simple, has reduced categories, and more online accessibility. “The Government is rebalancing the immigration system to support its plan for a higher-productivity, higher wage economy and these pathways make it easier for employers to hire and attract migrants for specified high skilled, hard-to-fill, and high paying occupations. “The new Straight to Residence and Work to Residence pathways are available for specified occupations on the Green List” says Michael Wood. “The new pathways will have the same health, age, and character requirements as the Skilled Migrant Category but will have a different application process and be more straightforward to apply for with much faster decision times. Immigration New Zealand expects to complete most applications within 6 weeks where complete information has been provided. “People working in Work to Residence or Highly Paid occupations can count their two years from 29 September 2021. 1. Straight to residence 2. Work to residence 3. Highly paid - 'twice the median wage’ Straight to residence pathway will be available from 5 September 2022. Work to Residence and Highly Paid pathways will available from 29 September 2023. In general, they will also need to be on an Ac-credite d Employer Work Visa, although provisions have been made for people who have already started working in these roles on other work visas before 4 July. “Many skilled migrants in New Zealand will already be eligible for the 2021 Resident Visa but we are backdating when work in New Zealand can be counted to ensure that the small number of people who aren’t eligible for the 2021 Resident Visa can still have some work in New Zealand recognised for the new Work to Residence and Highly Paid pathways. “These new pathways help provide more certainty and a streamlined path for those we are looking to attract. These are not the only pathway to skilled residence, and they are intended to complement the Skilled M i g r a n t Category. We are currently reviewing the category to identify which other skills New Zealand wants to attract and retain. Details about the new settings and when the category will reopen will be announced in the coming months”, Michael Wood said. Elligibility Criteria: For more details about this residence pathway read the full article at www.migrantnews.nz
Page 1 and 2: www.migrantnews.nz YOUR FREE COPY V
Page 3 and 4: w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z
Page 5: w w w . m i g r a n t n e w s . n z
Page 10 and 11: P a g e 1 0 w e b s i t e : w w w .
Page 16: P a g e 1 6 w e b s i t e : w w w .

Migrant News Vol 15 No 3, 2022

Create successful ePaper yourself

Delete template?

Save as template?