Immigration Minister Andrew Little has ordered a review into aspects of the work visa application process after ‘serious concerns’ were raised by a whistleblower.
Video / Mark Mitchell
First they were placed into a three-bedroom house crammed with 24 men. Now, they have been told they have a week to leave the property because they were occupying it illegally.
The men are among a group of more than 100 migrants from Bangladesh, Pakistan and India who allegedly paid thousands of dollars for employment agreements with local recruitment agents but have received no work or pay since arriving.
“We are being evicted, but where do we go?” asked Parjinder Singh, 25.
“If we have to sleep in the streets, we will die in the cold.”
Singh had paid about $20,000 for his visa and the promise of a full-time job that paid $30 an hour and would lead to permanent residency for him to support bringing the rest of his family here.
Living conditions are "unfit for humans", a support worker says. Photo / Alex Burton
Groups of between 20 to 40 are being crammed into two- and three-bedroom properties in Auckland’s Blockhouse Bay, Lynfield, Manurewa, Glen Eden, Takanini and Hillsborough.
In a letter from Charlton Property Management, the men at the Manurewa house were told they were in breach of the Residency Tenancy Act and they were not allowed to stay there. The letter said no more than three people were allowed to live in the house.
The men invited the Herald into the property yesterday afternoon. In the living room, four mattresses were laid on the floor and shared by seven men.
They share a single shower and one stove, which was covered in grime. In the bedrooms, more mattresses were on the floor and suitcases were piled up against the walls. The stench that came with having that many men crammed up in a small living space for months on end was obvious.
Jeet Suchdev (in grey) has been helping to distribute supplies to victims on behalf of the Indian High Commission. Photo / Alex Burton
The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has launched what it is calling an in-depth and comprehensive investigation into the alleged case of Indian and Bangladeshi nationals who arrived in New Zealand under the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme with the promise of employment that didn’t eventuate.
Officers have spoken to 115 people who were living in overcrowded and unsanitary houses in six houses across Auckland suburbs.
One support worker, who wanted to remain anonymous, said at one of the properties, a scuffle broke out after one of the men had been in the toilet for too long.
Meals comprise mainly of potatoes and onions. Photo / Alex Burton
Singh said just five people were in the Manurewa house when he arrived three months ago, but “more and more just kept coming”.
“Now we have to start the day at 4am and take turns to make sure we can get a chance to use the toilet or shower,” he said.
The 24 men have been sharing a single shower and stove for three months. Photo / Alex Burton
Singh said they are at a loss as to what their future here holds, but are praying “our lives don’t get any worse”.
Steve Watson, INZ’s compliance and investigations general manager, said foreign government representatives have been roped in to help.
“MBIE continues to engage with appropriate embassies including the Indian and Bangladeshi High Commissions around consular support for their nationals,” Watson said.
The Indian High Commission has also supplied food parcels and gas cylinders so the victims can continue to have food and heating.
The stove used to cook food for 24 men living in a three-bedroom home. Photo / Alex Burton
Many had taken to begging and turning to temples and mosques for meals after they ran out of food and money.
The men arrived via the accredited employer work visa scheme, a key policy introduced by the Government to help fill labour shortages. This month,the Immigration Minister ordered a review of the scheme.
Masud Alam, a legal executive handling the cases of more than 50 victims, said New Zealand’s reputation has been tarnished by the “unprecedented levels of migrant exploitation”.
Figures released to the Herald showed that the number of Migrant Exploitation Protection Visas granted by INZ had risen from 63 in 2021 to 265 in the eight months of this year alone.
Alam said the systemic abuse of the immigration process was a “multi-layered issue”.
“The modus operandi of these scam companies is distressingly simple,” he said.
“Instead of genuine job offers, they concoct false employment agreements to secure legitimate visas. A key accomplice in this scheme is the network of brokers ... often speaking the victims’ native languages, facilitate transactions, ensuring large sums usually between $20,000 and $25,000 are exchanged.”
Jeet Suchdev, convenor of the United Voice Community Trust and the Indian High Commission’s representative in distributing food and supplies to the victims, said he “can’t believe how people can do this to another human being”.
“Many of the men were shaking and crying when we first visited them. They are living in conditions that are not fit for human beings,” Suchdev said.
“They are at a loss on what to do, so we just had to assure them we are here for them and make sure they don’t do anything silly.”
Food donations have been given to migrants at the Takanini house after their plight was reported in the media. Photo / Alex Burton
Suchdev also runs the Bhartiya Samaj Charitable Trust, which is providing support services for some of the victims.
He is calling on the government to hold the scam companies accountable for their actions, freeze their assets, and return the money that was paid for the fake job offers.
“The New Zealand Government, by not thinking through the policy, is very much to blame for the situation. They need to play their part in helping the victims now instead of just leaving it to foreign embassies and consulates,” Suchdev said.
He also said the exploited migrant work visa should be extended from the current six months to a year to give a more realistic time frame for the victims to find alternative work.
Officials from MBIE, Auckland Council and the Fire Service arrive to inspect an Oriana Ave property in Lynfield. Photo / Jason Oxenham
In Takanini, Youges Rao, 35, has been living in a three-bedroom property with 28 other men for the past two and a half months.
Their plight was reported by the media after he and the other occupants called police after running out of food in the middle of August.
“Neighbours and even some strangers have been donating food to us since our case was known,” Rao said.
“We are not hungry now, but we still don’t have the jobs and our families back home remain hungry because we don’t have a cent to send back.”
INZ said it will take time to gather all the evidence given this was a “complex active investigation”.
It is unclear how widespread the visa fraud and exploitation are, and the Herald’s queries on numbers are being treated as an Official Information Act request.
“There are restrictions on what details can be shared publicly in order to not potentially jeopardise the outcomes of the investigation or any subsequent prosecutions,” the ministry said.
Lincoln Tan specialises in covering stories around diversity and immigration. He’s been a journalist at the Herald since 2006.
