New Zealand receives 125,000 immigrants in year ending August

Although 125,000 immigrants entered New Zealand in one year ending August, shortages in the labour force in high-demand sectors for the country such as technology and construction remain.

It is averred that the latest data to be revealed by the statistics office would raise calls for the government to implement better policies to attract workers with the right skills required to fill jobs in the country in the Oceania region.

Graeme Wheeler, Reserve Bank of New Zealand governor, was quoted by the Reuters as saying at a news conference in August that the crucial issue surrounding migration was the quality of people that were entering the country. He said that the skills they had brought to the table and how they could add value to New Zealand’s economy was nebulous.

Although foreign nationals with experience in sectors where the skill scarcity list was high stood higher chances of obtaining a work visa and residence permit in New Zealand, only eight percent of migrants got work visas on that list, said Michael Woodhouse, Immigration Minister.

Meanwhile, Auckland’s housing boom, driven in part by the rising number of immigrants looking out for a place to reside, and the reconstruction of Christchurch’s many structures, which were ravaged by an earthquake, caused a solid demand for construction.

But labour shortage created for Fletcher Building, the Pacific nation’s largest construction company, many hurdles in executing their projects on time.

Mark Adamson, Fletcher CEO, said that the native labour force was overextended and they were looking to Australia and the UK, especially for project management fields.

Even IT sector, New Zealand’s fastest-growing export segment, was also grappling to complete projects within deadlines.

The Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment revealed that the number of jobs in the technology sector had risen by 35 percent in the last four years.

Rod Drury, CEO of Xero, a Wellington-based financial technology firm, was of the view that getting enough number of skilled workers continues to be a tough ask.

He said that they had more jobs that needed to be filled and were always on the lookout for people. At present, 70 percent of its workers are said to be foreign recruits.

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