The horticultural sector says it is committed to improving the Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme in light of a critical report on the programme by Equal Employment Opportunity Commissioner Saunoamaali’i Karanina Sumeo.
Her report includes more than a dozen recommendations made to the government on the RSE scheme, headed by a call for an urgent review of the scheme and implementation of human rights-based changes before the next harvest season kicks off in 2023.
She calls on employers to use standard offers of employment and contracts, and adhere to minimum employment and accommodation standards. They should, she said, be more transparent about deductions and conditions laid out in worker agreements.
“It has been absolutely distressing to witness the living conditions, exploitative practices and the apparent disrespect on the mana, collective and cultural identity of the workers that are coming from the Pacific to work in our industries here,” she said.
She said that in over a year of investigating the scheme, the commission had observed and heard about potential violations of workers’ right through unreasonable pay deductions, denial of personal and cultural freedom and grossly inadequate housing.
“Our engagements with RSE workers have revealed serious gaps in the scheme, which may enable a systemic pattern of human rights abuses throughout the country.”
HortNZ has acknowledged that the claims follow similar reports from earlier this year. Those claims were investigated by the Labour Inspectorate, which did not find any breaches of minimum employment standards or RSE scheme standards.
HortNZ reiterated that the sector has zero tolerance for employee mistreatment or breaches of employment standards, pointing to auditing by the Labour Inspectorate to ensure standards are met.
But the commissioner cited a lack of oversight, regulation and enforcement within the scheme, enabling employers to exploit workers if they choose to, with few consequences.
“While I acknowledge and welcome the government’s assurance that a review is taking place, I urge the government to incorporate my observations from this past year as captured in this report into their review,” Sumeo said.
She has recommended RSE workers be allowed freer choice of employment by removing regulations that tie them to specific employers in specific areas, opening them up to a pool of other approved RSE employers should they choose to change.
The commissioner told of visiting workers living in very poor accommodation, with small bedrooms and living areas and poorly heated homes.
Her concerns extended to the limitations workers faced in their leisure time, which she said included curtailing kava drinking outside of work hours and limiting their ability to travel to visit other parts of their region.
“I’m hopeful that the recommendations in our report will be considered by all stakeholders involved in defining and reviewing policy and legislation relevant to the RSE scheme,” she said.
HortNZ has stated industry representatives will continue to work to ensure the review’s outcomes protect workers’ rights and interests, and wants to see improvements by continuing to work with the Pacific nations, government and unions to make the scheme better.
