Working, or being exploited?

In Aotearoa New Zealand, we find ourselves regularly short of local workers, possibly because locals know they can get better quality work elsewhere, which is less physically hard, is not toiling outside all day in all weathers, and pays better. I encountered this shift in how we see manual labour - as 'peasant' work - clearly illustrated by the report from the Australian senate hearings as to why their horticulture and agricultural sector needed to import labour (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006, p. 13). As New Zealand attitudes have similarly shifted, local horticultural businesses now import workers in temporarily through a system known as the Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme (Immigration New Zealand, 2023a).

In Marlborough, 53% of the working population have full time jobs, with 17.4% having part time work (Statistics New Zealand, 2018) which is higher than other places in New Zealand. However, labourers make up 19.2% of the workforce compared to the New Zealand average of 11.3% (Statistics New Zealand, 2018).

Labouring work in the Marlborough vineyards is carried out during hot summers and cold winters, including grape harvesting, pruning, wire lifting, bud-rubbing, spraying and mowing. Work is physically tough and is often paid in 'piece' rates (Beer & Lewis, 2007). Demand for workers, particularly at the busier times of the year, such as harvest, is high. However, the physical effort required, and the working conditions, are insufficiently offset by the wages paid (Commonwealth of Australia, 2006, p. 13). This deters many New Zealanders from taking on this type of work.

The RSE scheme started the mid 2000s, allowing a capped number of workers from our Pacific neighbours to come and work in Aotearoa in primary industries (Whatman et al., 2017). Initially 8,000 RSE workers were allowed into New Zealand in 2007, but by the 2022-2023 season, the number had risen to 19,000 workers (Immigration New Zealand, 2023b).

Recent media reports have highlighted the unfairness and poor working conditions for many RSE workers, and for other labourers who work in the vineyards. The Equal Opportunities Commissioner from the Human Rights Commission found poor treatment was systemic and a version of "modern day slavery" (Fonseka, 2022). The Commonwealth of Australia (2017) had a range of hearings exploring human trafficking, modern slavery and decent work, then enacting the Modern Slavery Act 2018 to redress these issues across the Tasman.  

To prevent employers and contractors continuing to give the industry a bad name, it has been recommended that New Zealand ratify the International Convention, and to actually work to protect migrant worker rights. It has been suggested that the RSE scheme be reviewed using a "human rights lens"; that RSE workers be allowed to change employers without being in breach of Immigration New Zealand visas; that workers have plain English contracts; that conditions be inspected; and that employer pay deductions and rules be made transparent (shades of the 1930s 'company store' seems to be recurring); along with pastoral care rights being stated and upheld (Fonseka, 2022). It also appears that workers have not been able to return home, should they want to.

We like to think of ourselves as being an egalitarian society. It appears instead that - if no one is watching - we can be ruthless overloads and treat people as if they were medieval peasants. It should come as no surprise, then, that we wonder no longer want to do "peasant" work.

Kate

References:

Beer, C. & Lewis, N. (2007). Labouring in the vineyards of Marlborough: Experiences, meaning and policy. Journal of Wine Research, 17(2), 95-106. https://doi.org/10.1080/09571260601004187

Commonwealth of Australia. (2006). Perspectives on the future of the harvest labour force [report]. Australian Senate Standing Committee on Employment, Workplace Relations and Education. https://www.aph.gov.au/~/media/wopapub/senate/committee/eet_ctte/completed_inquiries/2004_07/contract_labour/report/report_pdf.ashx

Commonwealth of Australia. (2017). An inquiry into human trafficking, slavery and slavery-like practices [report]. https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/Law_Enforcement/Humantrafficking45/~/media/Committees/le_ctte/Humantrafficking45/report.pdf

Fonseka, D. (2022, December 12). RSE workers being treated ‘like slaves', Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner says. Stuff. https://www.stuff.co.nz/business/130729008/rse-workers-being-treated-like-slaves-equal-employment-opportunity-commissioner-says

Immigration New Zealand. (2023a). Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Scheme. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/employ-migrants/scheme/emp/recognised-seasonal-employer-rse-scheme

Immigration New Zealand. (2023b). Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme research. https://www.immigration.govt.nz/about-us/research-and-statistics/research-reports/recognised-seasonal-employer-rse-scheme

Modern Slavery Act 2018. Commonwealth of Australia. https://www.legislation.gov.au/Details/C2018A00153

Statistics New Zealand. (2018). Census place summaries – Marlborough region. https://www.stats.govt.nz/tools/2018-census-place-summaries/marlborough-region#work-income-and-unpaid-activities

Whatman, R., Bedford C., & Bedford, R. (2017, July 6-7). RSE: the ghosts of schemes, past, present and yet to come [Paper presentation]. RSE Employers' Conference, 6-7 July 2017, Blenheim, New Zealand. https://devpolicy.org/pdf/blog/RSE10thPaper_WhatmanBedfordFinal.pdf

* Kate Horrey kindly prepared much of the material for this post