New Zealand's most experienced researcher comments on the Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme

The Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme has become one of the most important connections between New Zealand and the Pacific - linking our horticulture sector with thousands of seasonal workers, their families and their home communities across the islands.

For many, it is more than just a labour programme. It represents opportunity: the chance to earn, to learn and to return home with resources that can make a lasting difference.

It is also a scheme that, rightly, sits under increasing public scrutiny. Expectations around worker wellbeing, employer responsibility and the long-term impacts on Pacific communities are higher than ever.

That makes it all the more important to understand not only where challenges exist, but also where the scheme is delivering positive outcomes.

With a long-standing research interest in this area, I was pleased to have the opportunity to analyse findings from a recent Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) survey exploring the extent to which some RSE employers go ‘above and beyond’ to support Pacific employees - both while they are in New Zealand and once they return home.

There were 44 responses to the survey - around 25 per cent of the country’s RSE employers. These findings should not be treated as statistically representative, as employers already doing more than required may have been more likely to respond.

The results provide a striking snapshot of the breadth of voluntary support many employers have offered to help workers achieve specific goals in their home communities.

This included assistance following cyclones, earthquakes or tsunamis, as well as support for voluntary worker savings schemes and community development initiatives.

Almost all respondents also indicated an interest in learning more about opportunities to provide additional support, on a voluntary basis, to help workers achieve development goals back in the Pacific.

Given that such contributions are not required or expected under RSE contract obligations, these responses are an encouraging indication of the efforts some employers are making to help workers secure lasting benefits at home from participation in the scheme.

Through my research, I was already aware that some New Zealand employers were making significant contributions to village development. What was particularly interesting in this survey was the wide range of ways employers are assisting RSE workers.

Examples I have seen personally include a Motueka company that helped build a preschool and a wharf for fishing boats in two Tongan villages.

Examples cited in the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment (MBIE) report include employers contributing labour, funding, equipment and materials to help connect a village in Vanuatu to power.

Other support included water storage drums, solar panels, yearly school materials, whiteboards, laptops, an outboard motor for a community boat, and life jackets.

A village in Kiribati received school supplies, a water pump and help with construction and irrigation.

Assistance following disaster events was also significant. In Samoa, some employers provided materials, equipment and labour to support cyclone recovery. One company sent a volunteer team along with building supplies to rebuild three fales, while others contributed food and essential goods.

An important outcome of the survey is that it highlights the many ways some employers actively look for opportunities to help workers make the most of their earnings and achieve their goals - providing better lives for families and communities.

RSE workers do not only send home cash remittances. Many also purchase practical items in New Zealand, such as farming equipment or outboard motors for boats. One employer outlined how trade discounts were made available to workers, while others provided shipping containers to help transport purchases home.

Almost two thirds of respondents were also encouraging voluntary retirement savings contributions in the Pacific.

This included using the Seasonal Worker Superannuation Administration System (SWSAS) and facilitating contributions to National Provident Funds.

It was also very positive to see strong interest from employers in learning more about how they might assist workers and communities in areas such as health, agriculture, business development and skills acquisition.

Overall, the survey provides an encouraging snapshot of some of the quiet and unassuming ways RSE employers are supporting workers in aspects of their lives far beyond their New Zealand workplaces.

 

Opinion by: Richard Bedford, Emeritus Professor, University of Waikato and Auckland University of Technology