January 24th 2008 – New Zealand Farmers Recruit foreigners on Farms
Farmers having a problem getting staff as the boom times continue in the industry are recruiting foreigners to get the job done. There are hundreds of jobs going on farms around the country and it is the recruitment agencies that are now hard at work, bringing in foreigners for what has traditionally been a very kiwi job.
Randy Layno from the Philippines is just one of those foreigners who came over to New Zealand looking for greener pastures. "I like the work here, nice place and peaceful country," says Layno.
Seeing people like Randy on farms is now becoming common place in New Zealand. "We got a lot of foreign people on farms working, just because there's just not enough local people to fill all the gaps," says Martin Furrer, a Hinds dairy farmer.
The gaps are being caused due to the dairy industry booms on the backs of soaring milk returns, with the South Island expecting over a 100 new farms this year, which means hundreds more workers will be needed. "Every farm needs about four people to employ it but we also need the service industry to come on board - you know more veterinarians, more people that service the milking machines, more electricians," says Willy Leferink, from Federated Farmers.
There are estimates the industry will have a shortfall of around 3000 next season.
"Dairy farmers are feeling the pain you know the workers that they have got are working to cover two of three staff," says Hayden Creed, a Farm Recruiting Agent.
Some recruiting agencies have queues of foreigners wanting to get into the country, for obvious reasons.
"You know my salary there is I think six times fold here," says Alfonso Del Rosario, another Filipino farm worker. Federated Farmers has been working with the immigration service to make it easier to bring people into the country.
"I think it would be very helpful if we work together with immigration to solve the issues and find them a clear understanding of what the demands are," says Leferink.
The increase in foreign workers could also be an incentive to get more Kiwis to get back on the farm as many of the foreigners will attest to the fact that New Zealand is a great country to live and a great one to work in as well.
If you are interested in migrating to New Zealand to work in agriculture then contact
info@amblercollins.com for further information and assistance.
