John MacDonald: Employers should be able to hire whoever they want

Ever since the 1930s, when American soldiers were based all around the world, people in many countries have been antsy about foreigners getting what appears to them to be special treatment or privileges. 

The phrase people used back in the day about the US soldiers was something along the lines of them being overdressed, overpaid, oversexed and over here. 

And the Government seems to be tapping into the same kind of sentiment with this crackdown on employers not following the rules when they want to hire workers from overseas. 

That some employers are going straight to taking-on migrant workers without even trying to find locals to do the work first. Which they’re supposed to do or required to do.  

Immigration Minister Erica Stanford is saying today that, if  employers don’t follow the rules and don’t prioritise hiring New Zealanders, then they can forget about being allowed to hire anyone from overseas ever again. 

She says, since we started giving out accredited work visas to migrant workers three years ago, there are 20,000 more unemployed New Zealanders. 

“We have New Zealanders who are desperate for jobs and they need to be given the first opportunity for those."  

Which I think will go down like a cup of the old proverbial with some employers, who will say they should be allowed to employ whoever they want from wherever they want.  

And that’s a view I agree with. 

It’s something they’ve been pushing back against for years. But where the Government’s current concern stems from, is the number of employers who aren’t telling Work & Income that they’re on the lookout for staff. When they should be. 

That’s because they’re not even interested in hiring locals and just want migrant workers. 

Erica Stanford says more than one-in-six employers just want to employ migrants without considering local workers. 

From the perspective of someone who is unemployed and needing work, I can see how that would be frustrating. 

But does that mean that we should be forcing employers to give locals work over people from overseas? 

It’s a bit rich of the Government to say that we need to turn the education system on its head so young New Zealanders can grow up and be ready to work anywhere in the world; but then, when it comes to people from other countries coming to work here, we go all protectionist on it.   

Employers themselves certainly think they should be free to hire whoever they want. They’ve been saying that since 2016, when the-then National government announced changes to “put kiwis first in line for jobs”. 

Anne Tolley was the social development minister at the time and she said: “The Government is committed to getting more New Zealanders into work by ensuring they are first in line for jobs.” 

Which is the exact same thing Erica Stanford is saying today. 

But I bet it won’t sound any better to employers today than it did nearly 10 years ago. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:06):
You're listening to the Canterbury Mornings podcast with John McDonald
from News talksb.

Speaker 2 (00:13):
Ever since World War II, so we're going back a bit.
Ever since World War II, when American soldiers were based
all around the world. Ever since then, people seems to
be pretty much, well most countries, people have been antsy,
haven't they about foreign has taken over or foreigners getting

(00:34):
special treatment, or foreigner's getting more privileges, or you know whatever.
The phrase during the war that people used about the
American soldiers was something along the lines of they're overdressed,
they're overpaid, they're over sexed, and they're over here. And
the government seems to be tapping into the same kind

(00:56):
of sentiment with this warning that's giving employees about hiring
workers from overseas or more to the point, and you
know it's the title too, because it's in the rules.
More to the point. The government's not happy that some
employers are going straight straight to taking on migrant workers
without even trying to find locals to do the work first,

(01:19):
which they're supposed to do or required to do. We're
finding out today that at least one in six aren't,
which is why we've got immigration Minister Eric Stamford saying
today that if employers don't follow the rules, don't prioritize
hiring New Zealanders, then they can forget about being allowed
to hire anyone from overseas ever again, and she's pointing

(01:45):
out today that since we started giving out accredited work
visas to migrant workers three years ago, since then, there
are now twenty thousand more unemployed New Zealanders. And she's saying, quote,
we have New Zealanders who are desperate for jobs and
they need to be given the first opportunity for those jobs,

(02:05):
which I think we'll I think that sort of talk
will go down like a cup of the old proverbial
with some employers who will say that they should be
allowed to employ her whoever they want, from wherever they want,
whenever they want. And that's a view that I agree with,
and I know there will be employers saying that because

(02:27):
they've been pushing back on this for years. There's quite
a milestone moment back in April twenty sixteen. But I'll
come back to that. But where the government's current concern
stems from is the number of employers who just aren't
telling work and income that they're on the lookout for
staff when they should be. And the reason for that

(02:50):
is they're not even interested in hiring locals and they
just want migrant workers instead. One and six. That's what
Eric Stamford is saying today. In fact, more more than
one in six employers wanting to employ a migrant put
no effort at all into finding a local wor worker first.
They don't contact work and income, which they're supposed to.

(03:11):
Some of them don't even advertise the job which they're
supposed to. And look from the perspective of someone unemployed
and needing work, I can see how that would be frustrating.
But there's the butt. Does that mean that we should
be forcing employers to give locals work over people from overseas.

(03:32):
I don't think so. I think employees should be free
to do what they want. Because it's a bit rich,
doesn't it. Think about it. It's a bit rich for us,
or for the government at least, to say that we
need to turn the education system on its head so
that young New Zealanders can grow up and be ready
to work anywhere in the world. Ain't go out and
make a difference all those flash hairy jobs around the world. Whatever,

(03:54):
you want to do, go and do it. But when
it comes to people from other countries coming to work here,
we're all protectionist on it. And employers themselves certainly think
that they should be free to high whoever they want.
They've been saying that for years, but particularly since twenty
sixteen when the then National government announced changes to quote

(04:15):
put Kiwi's first in line for jobs. There was a
headline on their announcement and since then anyone considering hiring
an overseas worker for a low skilled job has had
to go to Work and Income first to check that
there isn't a new Zealander available to do it. And
Tolly was Social Development Minister at the time, and she said,
quote the government is committed to getting more new Zealanders

(04:38):
into work by ensuring they are first in line for
jobs end of quote, which is the exact same thing
Erica Sandford is saying today. But I bet it still
won't sound any better to employers than it did nearly
ten years ago.

Speaker 1 (04:53):
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