Court decision a win for Southland farmers
Federated Farmers says it welcomes a recent court decision which granted a stay on rules in the Southland Water and Land Plan until legislative changes can be made by government.
OPINION: Dairy farmers will be breathing easier thanks to the Government last month delivering a Christmas gift in the form of immigration reforms.
For years, Federated Farmers has been pushing for changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa scheme on behalf of farmers desperate for migrant workers to ease acute staff shortages on farm. Getting visa approval for an accredited employer to recruit a migrant dairy farm worker is taking up to six months.
For dairy farmers, the crux of the problem has been the type and format of information required by Immigration NZ and the time officials are taking to process applications.
Feds have been pushing for a simpler process and greater recognition for accredited employers.
And it was Immigration Minister Erica Stanford who really delivered for farmers last Christmas.
The critical changes to the Accredited Employer Work Visa settings include:
This hardly made sense, paying what are essentially entry-level farming staff the median wage, particularly when that's more than what a Kiwi in the same role would be earning. All that did was inflate the wage bill for farmers who were already under huge pressure, desperate to find staff, and couldn't find any suitable Kiwis who wanted to do the work.
This means a staff member can stay in the country for three years on one single visa, instead of needing two visas by the time you apply for the one-year extension. For farmer employers wthis will cut thousands of dollars in costs for farmers.
DairyNZ data shows that 16% of farms didn't have enough staff to meet their needs.
The Government's changes will make it easier for the dairy sector to attract good overseas workers and ease the staff shortage while helping to create a pathway for these migrants. It's a win-win situation.
Farmer-owned co-operative Ravensdown is winding down the operations of its agritech subsidiary C-Dax following a long decline in sales.
The recent East Coast Farming Expo, held over two days at Wairoa, offered an insight into the current state of agriculture on the east of the North Island, at a time when the locals are remembering the second anniversary of Cyclone Gabrielle.
A Research programme supported by Beef+Lamb NZ is investigating the potential of ‘accelerometer’ sensors for early detection of conditions such as facial eczema (FE) in sheep.
In the past year, the Farmer Time for Schools programme which seeks to connect New Zealand school students with farmers, has experienced further growth.
Fresh Carriers Co. Ltd (FCC) and Zespri have completed the first ever kiwifruit charter powered by a low-emissions fuel.
New Zealand lingerie brand Rose & Thorne is expanding its virtual bra fitting service in an effort to provide rural women in with better access to specialised advice.
OPINION: At last, a serious effort to better connect farmers and scientists.
OPINION: If you believe Maori Party president John Tamihere’s claim that “nothing dodgy” occurred at Manurewa Marae during the last…