Migrant hire simplified

Highly skilled people are needed for farms, many of which are multimillion-dollar businesses .

Federated Farmers has put together a one-stop-shop to help dairy farmers navigate Immigration New Zealand's work visa and permanent residency processes, which can be difficult to follow.

Federated Farmers' immigration pack has all the information and application forms dairy farmers need to employ a migrant, making it a straightforward step-by-step process.

The pack is a "smart document" that helps employers and prospective migrants meet the requirements by asking a series of very simple questions.

It provides position-specific information for dairy farmers looking at hiring a migrant as a dairy farm assistant, assistant herd manager, herd manager or farm manager.

The pack is an alternative to hiring an immigration consultant and allows employers and their migrants to complete their own work visa and permanent residency applications.

A Federated Farmers farm employee remuneration report is provided with the pack so employers can ensure they are paying their migrant the market salary, which is one of Immigration NZ's requirements.

The Federation decided to put the pack together after receiving numerous calls from members who found it hard to navigate the work visa and permanent residency process.

The dairy industry currently relies heavily on migrant labour because there are not enough New Zealanders with the skills needed by the industry.

Dairy farmers want to employ people who want to forge a career in agriculture, and more often than not the people Work and Income New Zealand recommends are not suitable.

Federated Farmers' report shows that 20 per cent of the dairy farmers who responded have staff who are migrants.

There is a common misconception that farming is a low-skilled and low-paid profession.

This is a myth - farms are multimillion-dollar businesses which produce New Zealand's main exports. To run a farm and contribute to one requires real skill.

Until this misconception is addressed and New Zealand's education system attracts more young people to undertake a tertiary qualification in agriculture, our farmers will continue to rely on migrants.

While Federated Farmers is working with the other major industry sector groups to address this shortage and misconception, attracting young people into our industry will take time.

The Federated Farmers immigration pack is a way to help members and non-members get the skilled labour they desperately need, while we work and develop ways to attract more New Zealanders into the agricultural sector.

*The pack is available on Federated Farmers website at www.fedfarm.org.nz or by calling 0800 327 646. It costs $200 for members and $750 for non-members.