Hospo NZ welcomes working holiday and visa changes

Hospitality New Zealand has welcomed moves to allow additional workers to enter the country to work in sectors affected by international labour shortages, including hospitality and tourism.

The Government has announced changes to help ease casual workforce shortages by temporarily increasing access to working holiday makers by extending visas of those in country and making an additional 12,000 spaces available.

Chief Executive Julie White says even though the doubling of numbers under the Working Holiday Scheme and the extension of visas are temporary, they will make a big difference to hospitality businesses struggling without enough staff.

“Having access to more staff will definitely help businesses open their doors for more days and for longer each day, and it will help improve the wellbeing of many owners and operators and their staff who have been working long shifts.

“The changes will kick in in time for the up-coming summer season, which many businesses will be relying on most heavily after a winter where lack of staff meant they were turning away customers.

She says that while the changes will help, they are no “silver bullet”.  “The reality is, we have a global war on talent. We have to make sure we are an attractive place to come to and we are open to welcome these visa holders.”

Julie White says that Hospitality NZ will continue to work with the Immigration Minister and his team around the policy and regulations required to keep the industry running efficiently.

“This will require continuously reviewing the settings and planning ahead,” says White.