Get rid of migrant workers first: unions

Unions are urging the Government to tighten borders and companies to fire migrant workers before Kiwis, as the full force of the recession hits.

The call comes as the Australian Government announces plans to reduce migrant numbers by 14 per cent and remove building and manufacturing trades from its skills-shortage list.

Manufacturing and Construction Workers Union general secretary Graeme Clarke said the union had been in contact with the Government about companies continuing to employ migrant workers.

Any businesses that had imported workers through the skills-shortage list should have to "re-prove" they could not fill the positions with Kiwi workers, he said.

"Our answer has always been `yes, you can import people', but now we want it proved again that the shortage still exists."

Christchurch branch secretary Phil Yarrall said the union complained to the Labour Department about jet boat manufacturer CWF Hamilton's decision to make 28 Kiwi workers redundant while retaining 24 migrant workers on temporary contracts.

"They got the permit because there was a labour shortage. Now there's no shortage," he said.

Yarrall said it was concerning that at least one local company had recently applied to bring in more migrant workers when there was clearly no longer a need.

Twenty-three-year-old Kane McVicar was made redundant from CWF Hamilton last Tuesday.

Some of his friends had trained up the migrant workers who were now keeping their jobs, he said.

"A lot of people are quite angry about it. They think it's a bit unfair."

CWF Hamilton would not comment.

Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union national secretary Andrew Little said he was dealing with a similar situation at a New Plymouth business.

Migrant workers had helped New Zealand through years of major skills shortages, but there were now questions over what to do when Kiwi workers were losing jobs. "Kiwi workers are obviously capable of making a long-term commitment to the business, but those on work visas are limited to a couple of years," he said.

"I would hope employers would take that into account," he said.

In Australia, the Government has announced plans to reduce the country's intake of foreign workers by 18,500 in 2009 a cut of 14 per cent.

New Zealand Immigration Minister Jonathan Coleman said Australia had increased the number of permanent migrants by about 35 per cent over the past two years.

New Zealand, meanwhile, retained its annual permanent intake at about 45,000 and controlled labour flows through the number of short-term migrants it accepted.

"Temporary visas are more of a tap that can be turned on and off," he said.

Coleman expected the number of migrants entering, or remaining in, New Zealand on short-term visas would drop during the recession.

"Immigration is extremely important to New Zealand and our economy but the emphasis has to be on trying to make sure as many New Zealanders are employed as possible."

MIGRANT LABOUR: A record 188,000 temporary work applications were approved in 2007-08, up 13 per cent on the year before. New Zealand accepted 46,000 permanent migrants over 2007-2008; 60 per cent through the skilled or business category, 30 per cent family reunification and 10 per cent on humanitarian grounds.

- © Fairfax NZ News