Sue Wards
26 March 2020, 8:25 PM
Assistance for this district’s immigrant workforce is closer following a video conference between Minister of Immigration Iain Lees-Galloway and Queenstown Lakes District Council (QLDC) mayor Jim Boult.
The meeting on Thursday (March 26) delivered significant progress in assisting the district’s immigrant workforce, the mayor said.
Jim said the Minister understood the scale of issues brought on by the COVID-19 crisis and the “urgent plight” of many immigrant workers in the district who are now unemployed following the tourism shutdown.
Wanaka Community Networks manager Kate Murray told the Wanaka App there had been an increase in the number of people in financial need, and an increase in the need for food parcels, including from people on working visas.
Yesterday the Minister undertook to urgently implement initiatives aimed at easing the situation for those on an essential skills working visa. Such visas are approved for people who have been offered a full-time job, after their employer has checked if any New Zealanders were available to do the work. People granted this visa may be able to support visa applications for their partner and dependent children.
The new initiatives include an automatic extension of expiring working visas (with immediate effect); the ability for working visa holders to be redeployed to alternative work places by the close of business Friday (March 27); and eligibility for working visa holders to apply for hardship grants from the Ministry of Social Development (also with immediate effect).
“What the Minister has provided will considerably ease the stress of many in our all-important immigrant workforce, which is a big part of our local community,” the mayor said.
“It will allow for urgent welfare assistance regardless of nationality, and for the redeployment of workers into industries which are critically short of workers due to border restrictions - like horticulture and viticulture - once the logistics around the lockdown and training requirements are considered.”
Since going live with registrations of interest two days ago, the QLDC has received 335 requests for community welfare via its website.
More than 200 food packages were delivered on Thursday by the QLDC emergency operations centre (EOC) team, with the help of individuals and organisations, and a grant from the mayoral discretionary fund.
PHOTO: Wanaka App