Migrants' visas cut back after locals' jobs axed

Six foreign workers on temporary visas who kept their jobs while their New Zealand colleagues were made redundant can no longer do the work of the axed staff.

Last week Immigration Minister Jonathan Coleman asked Immigration New Zealand to look into reports that 28 workers at MCK Metals Pacific Ltd at Bell Block were made redundant last October while Filipino welders on temporary work permits kept their jobs.

MCK Metals chief executive Pramod Khatri said nine workers from the Philippines were hired in October 2007 to do specialised aluminium welding and polishing when the firm was unable to get skilled New Zealand workers to fill the vacancies.

An Immigration NZ spokeswoman said the decision had been made to cancel the variation of conditions given to six of the foreign welders' work visas which had allowed them to do wider work.

The variations would have never been granted if officials had known redundancies were being made and it was now up to the company to decide whether it needed to hire more staff to do the work, she said.

Dr Coleman welcomed the decision.

"I would like to think that this decision sends a strong message to all employers. At a time of growing unemployment, immigration and labour authorities must be vigilant in ensuring that temporary work permits are only issued to address genuine skills shortages," Dr Coleman said.

There were still skills shortages in New Zealand and employers had to recruit from offshore and permits would be issued where no New Zealanders could be found to fill vacancies, he said.

New Plymouth man Stephen Bovett took his case to the Engineering Printing and Manufacturing Union, Immigration NZ and Dr Coleman after he was made redundant two weeks before Christmas.

"I am furious about this. I have a mortgage and two young children. MCK has taken jobs off local Taranaki people while keeping migrants on," Mr Bovett said.

When the jobs went, the Filipinos were the ones that should have been sent home, not Kiwis, he said.

- NZPA