INDEPENDENT NEWS

Employers Take Advantage Of Foreign Workers

Published: Tue 21 Sep 1999 08:45 AM
Unscrupulous Employers Take Advantage Of Foreign Workers - Scam Uncovered
The Christian Heritage Party has uncovered another scam involving the exploitation of foreign nationals on work permits in New Zealand.
“The scam operates as follows,” said John Bryant, Christian Heritage Party Christchurch Central Candidate. “Some foreigners with residency or business interests in New Zealand contact unsuspecting workers in their home countries and promise them jobs in New Zealand on good terms in employment contracts. They promise to ‘take care of all the paperwork’ for these workers, and arrange all work permits etc, arrange tickets and fly in the unsuspecting workers. Unfortunately for the workers, upon arrival, the conditions of employment are appalling. Such employers rely on the threat of deportation to keep them quiet, should the worker attempt to complain.
“Take the case of one particular worker from India as an example. He has described how an employer, a resident of Australia who has business interests in Australia and New Zealand, ‘arranged’ his work visa for New Zealand. The worker is a chef who works in a restaurant. The worker has also catalogued a tale of exploitation through extremely low wages and poor living conditions above the work premises. A co-worker in the same restaurant, has a similar tale,” he added.
“These men concerned are forced to work eight to ten hours per day, seven days a week, 365 days a year, with no holidays, for less than $4.50 per hour. This particular case has happened right under the nose of a sitting MP whose electorate office is adjacent to the restaurant concerned.
The employer is also no doubt aware that despite being taxpayers, these people will not receive any assistance from WINZ. WINZ has a policy that foreigners on work visas are not entitled to Community Service Cards, Unemployment benefits, Emergency assistance or Accommodation Supplement support. Should their employer now sack them for coming forward, they will be left destitute. They do not even have return airtickets, and on their wages with a family to support back in their home country, cannot afford them,”
He went on to say “At least the Labour Department is taking some action now, sending in a Labour inspector this afternoon to seek further information from the employer concerned”.
“Unfortunately these cases do not appear to be isolated. The ethnic communities are quite closely connected and similar tales abound. The New Zealand Immigration and Labour Departments are no doubt aware of the practices, but with foreign nationals too afraid to talk for fear of reprisals or forced repatriation, bringing these cases out into the open is difficult. I must applaud these two men for coming forward. They do not wish to see any more of their fellow countrymen so badly treated and this is why they have dared to speak up. I trust that justice will now be done without any further disadvantage to the men concerned,” John Bryant said.
“The Christian Heritage Party will leave no stone unturned to redress such violations of basic human rights,” he concluded.

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