Crisis in New Zealand hospitality industry due to lack of workers

New Zealand hospitality industry is facing a crisis due to the shortage of workers. Businesses in the sector are being forced to shut down to offer breaks to the staff. Staff poaching and Visa delays have been cited as the 2 major culprits for the scarcity.

Immigration New Zealand did accept that there are more Visas that need to be processed. Visa delays are now resulting in havoc for the New Zealand hospitality industry employers.

Chris Dickson General Manager of Smiths Craft Beer House said that the situation was terrible. Living costs and immigration are the reasons for the situation, he added. Dickson said that some of his staff has hired an Immigration Attorney. This is for speeding up the Visa process, he added. We are also using the Immigration Agent to hire overseas workers, said Dickson.

16 Hospitality businesses in Queenstown were advertizing for staff. This was on the job website SEEK, as quoted by the Otago Daily Times. Hamish Walker Clutha-Southland MP said that the situation is a crisis actually. The businesses in the hospitality sector are frustrated with delays in immigration, he added.

INZ Manager Michael Carley said that Visa applications from Queenstown continued to be prioritized. The applications are usually allocated for processing within 3 weeks said, Carley. The decision ready applications are normally decided in another 1 or 2 days, he added.

Carley said that it takes longer for processing the applications that are not decision ready. This is because extra information needs to be obtained prior to finalizing them, he added.

Around 40% of the applications being received at present for the Queenstown area were deemed to be decision ready and complete. INZ is working towards the betterment of processing timelines for Work Visas said, Carley.

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If you are looking to Study, Visit, Work, Invest or Migrate to New Zealand, talk to Y-Axis, the World’s No.1 Immigration & Visa Consultants.

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