Solution to Migrant Worker Exploitation
Mixed reaction to migrant exploitation visa changes
Response to the Government’s tightening of the migrant exploitation visa has been mixed, with some in the sector saying it was needed and others saying it will come at a cost to both the country and vulnerable migrants.
The changes are bullshit and that is on purpose.
There are 4 magical pillars of the NZ economic ‘success’
1 – Stealing Indigenous land and never paying back the full value.
2 – Selling basic milk powder to China
3 – Selling each other houses and pretending that makes us rich.
4 – Addiction to a low wage economy.
The migration exploitation rules are garbage because NZ loves exploiting migrant labour!
We are addicted to it.
We say locals are too lazy for these jobs when really what we say is locals won’t allow themselves to be exploited as easily as migrant workers.
There is of course a solution here.
Universals Union membership for every migrant worker crossing the border.
That way domestic workers know they are not competing against exploited labour.
That way migrant labour can’t be exploited without the Union stepping.
That way the migrant worker and domestic worker are all protected by the solidarity of the Union.
We don’t want a solution to exploited labour, that’s why Universal Union Membership for migrant workers is ignored and non-solutions like this are promoted.
On Wednesday the CTU are holding hui all over the country to speak out against this Governments attack on worker rights.
We need economic resilience, we need community resilience, we need radical reform to strengthen sustainability.
We need more Left Universalism.
We need to lift the tax yoke off working people, beneficiaries and the middle classes and we need to put it on the Banks, the Corporations, the Billionaires and the mega wealthy.
We need more Democratic Infrastructure, not less!
Why do we need these things?
Because the climate is shutting down and we face a bleak future where Billions will suffer and die thanks to catastrophic climate change.
This change will be forced upon us whether we like it or not.
This demands more connections, more bonds that bind us together to emotionally, socially, economically and politically survive what is coming.
Māori communalism is going to teach us a lot.
Here are some thoughts on what the CTU hui should be considering:
Iwi backed new Supermarket: Bring in a 3rd player into the supermarket duopoly that is Iwi backed with a focus on cheap prices for consumers, best prices for producers and high wages and work conditions for workers. Take 30% of the Supermarket Industry by force (allowed under the Commerce Commission powers) and use this as the backbone for a new food security system.
Mārae Civil Defence: Use Marae as the backbone of Civil Defence throughout NZ with resources based there alongside new building grants to strengthen those Marae.
Ministry of Green Works: We need to be able to build our own infrastructure.
New Mental Health First Responders: A whole new branch of first responders to deal specifically with mental health issues to talk people down and seek help rather than calling then Police and arresting people.
Artist Benefit: As part of a degrowth Capitalism model, pay Artists to make public art, use that art as a means to deal with the wondrous grief caused by the destruction of the planet.
Māori Parliament: An indigenous Parliament that amplifies Māori political voices.
Universal Student Union: Allow Student Unions to be the incubators for tomorrows politicians and stop students simply being cash cows for corporate education.
Universal Migrant Union: Stop migrant worker exploitation with universal student membership.
Retirement Village Unions: These scumbag retirement villages abuse their elderly and sick clients, universal Retirement Village Unions would stop them being exploited.
Pensioner Unions: Give our elderly a voice!
Sugar Tax to fund free dental.
Financial Transaction Tax to target speculators
Free Public Transport to lower emissions and make an impact on the wallets of the poor.
Wealth Tax aimed at the super wealthy
Inheritance Tax only realised after death
First $20 000 tax free for everyone
Lower GST to 10% to take the tax burden off the poor
Nationalise Early Childhood Education to lower the cost for working mothers and fathers
The Right to Strike to generate more Union muscle
Without vision the Union Movement is dead.
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.
We say locals are too lazy for these jobs when really what we mean is that New Zealanders are too poorly educated to fill the roles.
There’s no choice but to import taxpayers. . .
Absolut crap .To say locals are to lazy and uneducated is code for we cant be bothered training and paying young people because we can go to the air port and get some fresh off the plane and treat them like shit .We all expect to be treated well but the reality is as employees most are not and the trend is growing worse daily .As for importing tax payers most of these people dont pay tax because they are paid cash under the table as they are being exploited and paid less than the minimum wage .
Equally people who have been trained by the state, which still pays the major portion of tertiary tuition costs and apprentice training schemes, and those who have been subsidised or bankrolled by public and private sectors to attend courses and undertake specialised qualifications are at liberty to jump on that plane and move to another country where, presumably, you think they will be better treated.
thats what happens when you suddenly cancell all the jobs that employed those young people who suddenly find they have no future but are now well skilled .
Gordon walker. Bill English was the person who justified importing exploitable immigrant labour saying that young Kiwi guys were work-shy druggies. That was a hell of a message to send to employers, was untrue, and a nasty thing to do New Zealand males. If it’s Nat policy to establish New Zealand as a southern branch of the Indian subcontinent, this should have been put to the electorate. In time, the changing demographic of the electorate could be rubber stamping Bill’s shenanigans here.
Aunty you are right again .It was also English that told this government to shut down state housing and continue his sell down of those state houses and to throw people out on the street .
This is the Filth that is so educated he thinks because the price of butter is USD 6500 and WMP is USD 3550, all we have to do is make more butter and less WMP and we will all be billionaires.
Because we can make butter out of milk.
It is that utter ignorance of the far right that means the corrupt and venal CoC have no problem pushing through policies that are destructive to NZ and everyone living in NZ, even those dumb-ass redneck fools.
We say locals are too lazy for these jobs
…when really what we say is locals won’t allow themselves to be exploited as easily as migrant workers.
….when really what we mean is that New Zealanders are too poorly educated to fill the roles.
These jobs? What kinda jobs are ya all taking about? Unskilled? Semi-skilled? Skilled? Seems to me that there’s a lot of confusion over apples, oranges and pears. Yes, we can see who the RSE workers are. Exploited? A fair wage for a fair days work? But the work surely looks hard. Not for slackers. The supermarket duopoly. Mostly migrants where I live but not likely to be short-termers – may be wrong – but those who for one reason or another don’t have the qualifications to get ‘good’ jobs elsewhere – English language perhaps but in academic speak, more like a lack of social capital. But in some cases, the younger ones perhaps on their way to better things. One never quite knows. A check-out operator today, with extramural study an accountant in a few years. The construction game. Now there’s a minefield if ever there is one. Nurses? Another minefield. But nurses by and large skilled. And we need them. We do. In hospitals, in general practice and especially in care centers. Jockeys. Now there’s a job people may not have thought about. Don’t know if anyone takes a punt but around 30% of jockeys in NZ are new migrants now. Not because so-called kiwis are lazy or dumb-asses (but surely some are, or as many employers would have it, a good many simply lack what used to called – and probably still is – the work ethic). And in the jockey arena, except for the gals the blokes quickly get too heavy. Point is, there are genuine skills shortages in some industries. Not enough skills here in littl’ ol’ Nu Zuld so we have to go looking for them elsewhere … if they haven’t already signed up for team Aussie. And whose fault is that?
Nah, New Zealand is just a low wage country and unfortunately those with few skills – and/or not able to earn a living wage in exploitative industries – get the short end of the stick. And whose fault is that?
Unions, unions unions everywhere and freebies lowering the tax take.
Usually I agree with you but how about baby steps. Next thing it will be we need a union for unions.
Yes, too much Unionism and not enough of the tax take falling on the shoulders of the working class. Those terrible old days where this lot – ” Banks, the Corporations, the Billionaires and the mega wealthy” paid over 40% of the tax take, really, really were terrible times. We need more tax on ordinary people and we need to further weaken the ability of ordinary folk to fight back against this lot – ” Banks, the Corporations, the Billionaires and the mega wealthy”.
Yippee, you are without doubt getting what you want, my friend. The billionaire class grows, wars fought between ordinary folk are on the rise, public services disintegrate and more – brilliant.
Too early for a brew….
If Kiwis were better unionised the migrants wouldn’t be coming because kiwis would be getting paid to be educated into jobs.
How is it that 50 years ago when NZ in absolute terms was a poorer country it could pay nurses and teachers while they were training. Students were paid to gain experience in all kinds of businesses rather than being zero dollar interns. And a 16 year old factory worker while learning on the job doing the exact same job as the 50 year old alongside him was paid exactly the same money.
There is a Bankers Association and a Bank Workers Union but no Union Of Interest Payers and Usery Sufferers.
Start by deporting the so called employers that come to NZ ,”for a better life “.but bring their shit employment habits with them and exploit their own country people .
Then stop dodgy employers from being able to employ people from off shore .
Exploitation is becoming the scourge of being employed in NZ and sadly there are some former reputable employers who have no jumped on the bandwagon .
Public art? So who’s going to decide what is art? The Arts Council who tried to abolish Wm Shakespeare and declared him an imperialist colonialist, which was a downright lie ? Do we really want PC graphics all over the place when graffiti artists already do a pretty good job for free?
What’s more, decent wages could enable parents who want to care for their own young children to do so, instead of having to farm them out to paid strangers.
Govt funded Early Childhood Education when education has been so dumbed down from primary school right through to the universities? Yeah right.
And when the inevitable happens and your super wealthy move their their intellectual and financial capital offshore, as is currently happening under the Starmer totalitarianism, how do you intend to replace that gaping hole?
“And when the inevitable happens and your super wealthy move their their intellectual and financial capital”
Really please explain.
Is the cheap electricity aluminium smelter going to move off shore? Are the 10 supermarket owners in the NBR rich list going to move offshore? Are the owners of Fonterra going to move offshore? Are the workers in the gaming companies here for the lifestyle going to move off shore? Are film companies here for the scenery going to move off shore? Are the tourist operators and hoteliers going to move offshore? Is rocket lab going to move offshore? Are all The Warehouses going to be packed up and moved off shore? Are the most profitable banks in the world going to move offshore?
What intellectual and financial capital are you talking about?
Are you talking about super wealthy Zuru and Graham Hart? Their capital is already offshore.
Like little ‘ole NZ is so huge in the gaming, tourist and budget retail industries.
Where will they move to ?suddenly they will have to pay tax and put 11% into the equivelant to kiwi saver for the employees if the go to Aus .Top tax rate there 45% compared to the current 10% they are now paying .Not so rosie off shore is it .
Have you not heard of tax havens or Tiger countries with low tax rates for investor companies and/or startups?