The New Zealand Human Rights Commission has issued a scathing critique of the Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) scheme, asserting that it exploits migrant workers and urgently requires significant policy reforms. The Commission has called for the termination of the practice that ties visas to specific employers, arguing for a more robust framework that enforces ethical recruitment and worker protections. Additionally, the Commission advocates for enhanced job check verifications to validate the legitimacy of positions being recruited for the AEWV program.
The AEWV, introduced in May 2022, was designed as a temporary work visa program to allow accredited employers to hire overseas staff, ostensibly as a measure to combat migrant exploitation by ensuring that only accredited employers could hire migrant workers. However, a review led by Jenn Bestwick and commissioned by Te Kawa Mataaho (the Public Service Commissioner), concluded that the scheme prioritized reducing visa processing times over addressing risks linked to migrant exploitation and system abuse.
The review highlighted that between July 2022 and June 2023, the focus on meeting the demand for migrant workers without sufficient verification checks led to increased exploitation by unscrupulous employers. Migrants reported paying large sums to recruitment agents for non-existent jobs, or being dismissed upon arrival and forced into poorly paid, unregulated work. Describing their plight, one migrant likened the visa to “handcuffs.”
Despite changes made to the AEWV in April 2024, which introduced stricter requirements for both employers and visa applicants, the new measures have not fully addressed the underlying issues. The revised regulations included reducing the maximum continuous stay for AEWV holders, requiring employers to guarantee a minimum of 30 hours of work per week, and setting higher qualification and English proficiency standards for visa applicants. Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) Commissioner Saunoamaali’i Karanina Sumeo remarked that “the changes made in April did not address the underlying human rights risks.”
Immigration Minister Erica Stanford, speaking to the New Zealand Herald, acknowledged that migrant exploitation remains a “persistent issue” in New Zealand and assured that the Government is “taking action to help address” these concerns.
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