Migrant workers and the growth of dairy farming in Southland, New Zealand

Abstract

The New Zealand dairy industry has undergone a substantial period of growth over the last ten years, as more sheep, beef, and crop farms have been converted to dairy farming. A major problem for dairy farm employers is sourcing quality and skilled New Zealanders to work on their farms. Migrant labour has been used to mitigate these labour shortages, but little is known about this increasingly vital component of the dairy industry. Four researchers went to Southland in April 2012 to explore and understand the implications of migrant dairy farm employee labour force for New Zealand dairy farms and rural communities. The study highlighted Immigration New Zealand was the greatest problem facing dairy farm employers and migrant dairy farm employees, exercising the power to 'change the rules' at any time to replace skilled migrants with unskilled and unemployed New Zealanders. On farm training and induction practices have changed as greater numbers of migrant dairy farm employees are drawn to Southland, but effective communication between employers and migrants and proper training to use farm equipment, are areas of challenge for migrants'. There is a New Zealand wide perception that rural communities are welcoming, but the Southland community needs to be more accepting and open to the positives that migrant dairy farm employees are bringing to their communities. This research contributes to the understanding of the developing picture of a migrant dairy farm employee labour force in the New Zealand dairy industry, but more research needs to be completed to develop a comprehensive understanding of this area.