Accredited employers will no longer be allowed to take overseas employees on a 90-day trial period as part of new measures announced on September 20 aimed at checking the exploitation of migrant workers.
The new rules come weeks after at least 144 migrants who arrived on Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) were found living in squalor after they couldn’t find the jobs they were promised.
Migrant rights activists say the provision of a trial period is vulnerable to misuse, as employers can potentially extract money for a job offer and later fire the employee.
“This will allow migrants to be treated fairly and employers hire candidates based on a genuine labour need,” Immigration New Zealand (INZ) said in a press statement.
Officials also announced new ‘job check’ requirements for employers, which means applications must not include a trial period in the agreement with the employee.
“An application with a trial period will be declined. Employers found in breach of this standard could lose their accreditation,” the press statement said.
INZ also announced additional financial support for holders of Migrant Exploitation Protection Work Visa (MEPV) until March 2024. The migrants can now claim between $50 to $220 a week, depending on where they live and whether or not they have dependents.
Jeet Suchdev, Spokesperson for United Voices, a body representing ethnic organisations, welcomed the new developments.
“That [financial support] won’t be enough but at least they [the migrants] have got something when they had nothing,” he said.
The government is in the process of finalising the details of the financial support and how MEPV holders can apply for it, say INZ officials.
Migrants who already hold an MEPV are also eligible for a second MEPV, which gives them more time to look for a job in New Zealand. The second visa will last for six months, or the expiry of their original visa, whichever is lesser.
Triangular employers, or companies that hire employees to be placed in another company, recruiting migrants for construction sites, will also be required to have at least 35 per cent of their workforce made up of New Zealanders, an increase from the previous requirement of 15 per cent, according to the press release.