76,000 fewer people in NZ on work or student visas since the first lockdown

Property / news

The number of people in the country on work or student visas continues to slowly decline

16th Oct 21, 9:00am by Greg Ninness

There were 3228 fewer people in New Zealand on work or student visas at the end of September than there were at the end of August.

The latest figures from the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment show that there were 177,873 people on work visas in this country at the end of September, down from 180,492 at the end of August (-2619).

The number of overseas students in this country declined from 49,281 at the end of August to 48,672 at the end of September (-609).

The number of overseas workers and students in this country has been in a slow but almost continuous decline since the country went into its first pandemic lockdown in March last year.

Since the end of March last year the number of people on work visas has declined by 42,843 while the number of people on student visas has declined by 33,360.

That means there are now 76,203 fewer people in this country on work or student visas than there were when the country first went into lockdown in March last year.

The graph below shows the monthly trend.

At the end of September the Government announced that up to 165,000 people who were already in this country on work visas would be able to apply for residency, which will eventually see a substantial drop in the number of people on work visas unless border restrictions are relaxed and overseas workers start coming to this country in large numbers once again.

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27 Comments

by Fairlyfrank | 16th Oct 21, 9:51am 1634331093

The future will be.subject to perceptions from abroad as to how nz copes with covid in the next six months if we make a mess of it which appears likely given our limited medical facilities, there will be.no rush to come here by either foreign nationals or citizens returning. Why would you leave a country that has been through the worst to come to a new epicenter of virus problems. Also nz will struggle to compete with NSW if they go ahead with the proposal to have 2 million immigrants in the next 5 years .

by sparrow | 16th Oct 21, 11:11am 1634335871

If that goes ahead, it's against the will of the people:

Only 19 per cent of voters support a return to NOM of around 240,000. The rest want much less, including 28 per cent who prefer nil net migration. There has been a distinct hardening of attitudes towards immigration. Before the pandemic there was a rough balance between the share of voters wanting the current numbers to remain the same or to increase and those wanting them to decrease. But as of July 2021, only a small minority want Big Australia levels restored. The majority do not. Interest groups arguing for the restoration of substantial immigration usually claim that this is necessary if employers are to employ the skilled workers they need and thus promote economic growth. When we put this proposition to respondents only 26 per cent supported it. Most (61 per cent) chose an alternative proposition which was: ‘We should deal with worker shortages by raising wages and improving skills training for locals’. Similarly, most voters do not favour a return to the previous levels of overseas student recruitment.

https://tapri.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/TAPRI-survey-Oct-2021-f…

by Casual Observer | 16th Oct 21, 2:17pm 1634347036

More than 4,500 staff from the Department of Regional NSW, including Local Land Services and the NSW Department of Primary Industries, will be able to access five days’ special leave to assist farmers for an expected bumper harvest season in 2021.

Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW Paul Toole said special leave entitlements rolling out for the very first time will allow departmental staff to lend a much-needed hand as farmers struggle to find workers to bring in the crop.

https://www.dpi.nsw.gov.au/about-us/media-centre/releases/2021/minister…

by Tigadee | 16th Oct 21, 11:21am 1634336512

I really fail to see what the impetus to have many new immigrants is. Do we have ample infrastructure (roads, homes, schools, etc), and housing to support the influx of migrants? Do we have a declining and/or aging population that urgently needs to be replenished? Do we have growing diverse industries which will employ and grow our economy? Do we have high-value industries which will attract high-value immigrants? Do we have such constrained industries which require the importation of (cheaper) skilled labour and why is that the case?

I'm an immigrant myself, and I certainly want this adopted country to prosper, and that's by having the right kind of immigrants who contribute and add value to this nation, not just boosting numbers. It's the same as running a business - you want the best employees you can get to work at growing the business.

A report recently showed that there was a shortage of truck drivers in the UK. it was blamed on the Brexit but on the ground, the reality is that the industry is poorly paid, hours are long, the work is a lonely one and benefits are low. Even the migrant truck drivers had enough and that's why Brexit was a blessing in disguise for them. The UK now has turned to offering the job to ex-cons and those leaving military service (maybe a good thing, we'll see...).

Could it be that in NZ, maybe there are enough Kiwis who could fill those shortages without resorting to mass migration, but the industries aren't paying well enough and government isn't doing enough to make it profitable for companies?

by Pathos | 16th Oct 21, 12:17pm 1634339840

Apparently, we have a "housing crisis" according to many contributors to this site who insist we need to build, build, build.

If there are 76,000 less people accommodating themselves here than 18 months ago, and we still apparently have a "housing crisis", is it really a supply issue or rather a crisis of unrealistic prices?

by Brock Landers | 16th Oct 21, 12:43pm 1634341380

It's an over-supply of credit issue.

by Miguel | 16th Oct 21, 4:31pm 1634355076

You are confusing a drop in people on work visa's and a reduction in total migration. I suspect the decrease in people on work visa's is just people who have converted to residency etc.

The total net migration figures show a flatline in numbers, not any sort of negative net migration.

by Colin Nemo | 17th Oct 21, 8:18am 1634411930

True to some degree. Perhaps you fail to see why there's a need for immigrants however, the REAL supply of AVAILABLE labour is extremely low as compared to the ACTUAL supply of ALL labour explained here. Largely, most kiwis will not pass the drug tests and criminal history test required for most jobs and will not last because they're too lazy and quickly find that working is too hard and jump back on the WINZ benefit because it's free money for nothing.

There will always be work available for someone coming to NZ who are willing to work even just to get started so they can improve their livelihoods in a Western country. If it weren't for immigrants coming to this country and helping fill roles, both skilled and unskilled, this country will grind to a halt and the economic decline rapidly.

This is why the NZ Government has turned around their mandates and now granting resident visas to a swab of existing foreign work visa holders based on the criteria dated 29 September 2021. Once these foreign workers leave this country, many companies and businesses will deteriorate rapidly into garbage.

by Zachary Smith | 17th Oct 21, 11:23am 1634423032

It occurs to me if we can import workers and pay them the minimum while handing out benefits to our NZ born people to lay about all day it's a kind of "win win" situation.

by Ocelot | 17th Oct 21, 8:39pm 1634456370

"...most kiwis will not pass the drug tests and criminal history test required for most jobs and will not last because they're too lazy and quickly find that working is too hard and jump back on the WINZ benefit because it's free money for nothing."

I take it that's what you do then? Or, are you not a New Zealander, or are you just special?

Pay peanuts, get monkeys. There's no labour shortage, only a wage shortage.

If the pay is right I work weekends and nights too. The rich are getting richer at an accelerating rate, and you have the gall to say the working classes are useless. All that wealth is built on the backs of the working classes. If you can't employ them, that's a you problem.

by Carlos67 | 16th Oct 21, 1:06pm 1634342768

Perhaps we should learn from the mistakes that the UK made. Always said we are 10 years behind them on everything but the advantage of that is that you shouldn't make the same stupid mistakes. We don't need more people in this country unless we want to ruin it, it's a great time to hang out the "We are Full" sign.

by Waikatohome | 16th Oct 21, 4:17pm 1634354263

The current problems in the uk are due to a lack of immigrant labour. Since Brexit they are struggling to keep food on the shelves and fuel in the pumps. It might be temporary if wages rise high enough to tempt locals to take the jobs but this will come at a cost to businesses. Immigration is a double edged sword.

by sparrow | 16th Oct 21, 4:26pm 1634354804

It's always going to be difficult transition when you've encouraged businesses to depend on cheap migrant labour willing to work for pay and conditions no locals would tolerate. Doesn't mean it shouldn't happen though.

by kpnuts | 16th Oct 21, 4:40pm 1634355600

no its nots down to the lack of immigrant Labour its the failure to get the 1.5 million people on unemployment benefit into work or training to fill the 1 million vacancies -- there are also a very large number of long term sickness beneficiaries -- many of who are able to work but are discriminated against -

Its the same here -- we have 120,000 people on unemployment benefit and 10% under utalisation - that should be the starting point -- surely 20,000 of those could harvest fruit ? And as to the the wages are too low argument -- well get a job - get a better job -- get trained get a better job -- no way we should be paying any benefit to fit people because they chose to sit on their arse all day for $500 a week as opposed to work for $820 -

its the problem nobody wants to talk about and nobody wants to tackle -- but its holding NZ back and is one of the key reasons immigration was so high - importing fruit pickers, taxi drivers, chefs ( takeaway flippers) tour guides - adding to our infrastructure issues

Migration should be highly skilled only - and Nurses Dr's engineers not bloody chefs !

by streetwise | 16th Oct 21, 9:15pm 1634372108

Over my work-life I have acquired a good insight into what could conduce to a productive improvement in getting young people into employment. Large firms like Fletchers should have their own training academy. I'm sick of firms whining about a lack of skilled employees. How many of the larger firms have their own in-house training facility? And, perhaps with Maori and anybody with mental health problems, there could be mentors that work along side them. This latter would be a step up from the usual apprenticeship; perhaps the mentor could even pick them up from home and drive them to work and back each day.

Why do we have to always look to skilled immigrants? Why do I have to listen to those in the restaurant or cafe business whining about a lack of chefs and baristas when some of them own several restaurants or coffee bars? Why don't they work on just the one business themselves rather than empire building. In my long experience of running, serially, several small businesses I was always at the coal-face in direct contact with my customers. I was skilled in what I did and my employees would follow my example. I trained them properly and they always stayed a long time. I only had a couple whom I had to dismiss...they were both young adults and I discussed beforehand with their parents why I was dismissing them; they both came from good families but both seemed unable to even half-perform their job, to the exasperation of their parents. I figured there must have been something wrong mentally, but that something would probably be something that our phony psychology industry would not be able to fix.

I saw an immigrant on television the other evening moaning about the effect the lockdown was having on his three food businesses. Even before Covid we had too many takeaway and restaurant businesses; the place is swamped with them. Over twenty years ago it was an immigration scam to finance immigrants into small businesses as a means to citizenship through the 'business channel'.

by Tigadee | 17th Oct 21, 12:58pm 1634428690

@streetwise I agree there are just too many food businesses. It seems the first and easy point to start from for immigrants and locals alike when starting a business. It's like the # of sheep vs # of people thing - there seem to be disproportionately more food outlets in NZ in relation to the number of people. Adding to the fact that the big fast food companies also have a strong presence here as well.

And one other thing I could never figure out - why are prices so high when there's supposed to be so much competition? Why is a simple dish in a cafe so expensive when there are ten other cafes on the same street likely selling more or less the same dish or similar? Every food court I've been through seems to have more or less the same prices for the same food. Is there a cabal of cafe owners, takeaway and food court shop owners?

by Tigadee | 17th Oct 21, 12:47pm 1634428066

@WaikatoHome A report recently showed that there was a shortage of truck drivers in the UK. it was blamed on Brexit but on the ground, the reality is that the industry just pays poorly, the hours are long, the work is a lonely one and benefits are low. Even the migrant truck drivers had enough and that's why Brexit was a blessing in disguise for them. The UK now has turned to offering the job to ex-cons and those leaving military service (maybe a good thing, we'll see...).

by CWBW | 16th Oct 21, 2:17pm 1634347022

Inevitably schools will have to lay off more staff and increase their fees to justify a higher operational cost and that may further erode the quality of the country's educational system.

This country needs more people, the problem is not the number but the geographic dispersion of that number.

by Noncents | 16th Oct 21, 4:58pm 1634356730

Need more people? Its not the quantity of people, it is the quality.

Where would you rather live China or USA? Nigeria or Canada? Brazil or Australia?

by CWBW | 16th Oct 21, 5:51pm 1634359867

I have no preferences and I'd lived in some of those.

Quality is most expensive when it's ready made, work in progress presents deep value.

With people there are opportunities which will never exists if there aren't.

Let's rephrase the question again, would you like to live in Mongolia, Falkland Islands, Greenland or Namibia?

by Ahuhyeah | 17th Oct 21, 9:25pm 1634459109

I'm going with Greenland. Start my methane harvesting business and the land area, free of ice, set to grow opening up opportunities. Plus in many disaster movies everyone wants to get there to avoid what's happening on the rest of the planet. I'm going to believe those script writers did their homework.

by MortgageBelt | 16th Oct 21, 3:07pm 1634350070

There may be approx 3000 international students living offshore but studying online via NZ universities, polytechs & PTEs - with ongoing efforts to ramp this up & pipeline them onshore if ever the borders reopen.

https://www.educationcounts.govt.nz/topics/international-education

by alexil | 17th Oct 21, 8:59am 1634414356

totally safe https://vaxpain.us/

everyone get vaccinated

by fat pat | 17th Oct 21, 10:59pm 1634464748

If the NZ government mandates that people entering NZ be vaccinated then people simply won’t come to NZ.

I've already had covid. I am not vaccinated, and I will not get vaccinated to satisfy the irrational and hysterical demands of policymakers.

I will not comply!

by KH | 17th Oct 21, 9:15am 1634415303

Importing folk to keep wages down is a mistake long term for New Zealand.

Better to lift wages. Yes that does mean a change in the business pattern. Some business will cease, but that means they were not good business.

by Tigadee | 17th Oct 21, 1:26pm 1634430367

Better to lift wages. Yes that does mean a change in the business pattern. Some business will cease, but that means they were not good business.

Have to agree 100% there, and also add that there should be some sanity when tit comes to CEOs' pay. Paying someone who has little stake in the business in the first place 10x to 15x the average employee's salary plus bonuses, expenses and share options is just ridiculous and suppresses workers wages and potentially keeps product prices up.

by Property Leader | 18th Oct 21, 3:42pm 1634524920

In Nelson there is a shortage of workers to man fishing boats, and many other high paying skilled jobs. We need foreigners to fill the jobs. What is the problem with employing them. Bring it on. Open our world up and let’s start living again. I have many foreign skilled tenants. They are good people.