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News
Back to the news list Holiday workers left in limbo until Immigration up
14 January 2021 - Media Release - Stuff NZ
Fruit pickers with holiday work visas are struggling to get work despite receiving a six-month extension to their visas.

Visiting workers have been automatically granted the extension by the Government but the online work entitlements system has not been updated. As a result prospective employers won’t hire them.

The system will not be updated until March

French woman Marion, who would not give her surname, arrived in New Zealand with a 12-month working holiday visa at the end of May 2019.

Her visa was set to expire on December 25 but the Government changed the rules just days earlier, automatically extending holiday visas for six months.

Immigration New Zealand has told working visa holders that their visas have been extended.

French woman Marion, who is picking kiwifruit in Hawke’s Bay, says she is unable to look for other work until the online work entitlements system is updated.
SUPPLIED
French woman Marion, who is picking kiwifruit in Hawke’s Bay, says she is unable to look for other work until the online work entitlements system is updated.
However, Marion said that in a phone call with Immigration, the adviser could not explain what her work rights were.

Marion was told to tell prospective employers to write to Immigration to check her status.

While she was able to get work picking kiwifruit for a company that had hired her in the past and were comfortable waiting for visa confirmation, Marion was unable to apply for other jobs because her status was unclear.

Marion said not enough had been done to tell businesses about the delay in updating the visa details in Immigration’s system.

Marion was not alone in struggling to get clarity around the work visa extension.

Jayson Claassen Van Loggenberg, manager of the Rotten Apple Backpackers in Hastings, said he phoned Immigration on behalf of two workers on Wednesday.

Claassen Van Loggenberg said the workers were given a letter saying they would be given extensions, however, employers weren’t willing to go on the letters themselves.

”In theory they have extensions but in practice they don’t have working rights.”

This meant that New Zealand was back to having stranded backpackers that were unable to work, he said.

“I asked [Immigration] if I could find an employer that is willing to take them on their word and what is written on that piece of paper, legally, are they allowed to carry on working? And the person I was speaking with said they couldn’t answer that.”

Claassen Van Loggenberg’s two guests were now considering flying home just as they were needed by the fruit growers.

Holiday worker visa holders have been given visa extensions but workers and employers are uncertain what to do until Immigration’s ICT system is updated.
JOHNNY BLADES/RNZ
Holiday worker visa holders have been given visa extensions but workers and employers are uncertain what to do until Immigration’s ICT system is updated.
He wanted Immigration to fast track updates to the work entitlements system, to prevent the loss of experienced workers.

”Every set of hands that is not in the field is money lost and these workers work damn hard,” he said.

Spokespeople for the Horticulture Association and New Zealand Apples & Pears said they were not familiar with the visa issue.

An Immigration spokesman said it had contacted all eligible working holiday visa holders by email to confirm the automatic six-month extension.

The spokesman confirmed the email said eligible working visa holders would receive further confirmation of the extension by March, once Immigration’s computer systems were updated.

“In the interim, working holiday visa holders eligible for the six-month extension may use their confirmation email from Immigration as proof of their right to work when engaging with prospective employers,” he said.

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