Building occupations added to NZ skill shortage list

Seven building-related occupations have been added to New Zealand’s Immediate Skill Shortage List (ISSL), the country’s Immigration Minister Iain Lees-Galloway has announced.

“The Government will build 100,000 affordable homes over the next 10 years and the construction industry needs skilled workers to achieve this,” Minister Lees-Galloway says. “The Government will always ensure that where a genuine skill gap exists our immigration system will support employers to get the people they need.”

Employers whose occupations are on the ISSL and the Long-Term Skill Shortage List (LTSSL) do not need to go through the labour market process and do not need to prove they cannot find a New Zealander for the job.

“Adding these seven building-related occupations to the ISSL will make it easier for employers to get the people they require, including migrants, to deliver the homes this country needs,” the Minister continued. “Employing skilled migrants will meet the immediate demand for people with the skills required to rapidly increase the number of houses in New Zealand. In the near future KiwiBuild will be a catalyst for more young New Zealanders to work in the construction industry.”

A total of 34 occupations have been reviewed this year. In addition to the seven building-related occupations three motor industry-related professions are being added to the ISSL, as well as midwives and accountants. Five occupations are being removed from the ISSL and five from the LTSSL.

The removal and addition of occupations is the result of extensive consultation with industry groups, other stakeholders and relevant government agencies, alongside analysis of economic, labour market and immigration data.

“I want to emphasise that employers wanting to bring in migrant workers for occupations not listed on the ISSL or LTSSL can still do so, as long as they can show they’ve genuinely searched for suitably qualified and trained New Zealand workers,” says Mr Lees-Galloway.

“The Government is committed to matching skilled migrant workers with the industries and regions that need them, by strengthening the labour market test for work visas and making the skill shortage lists more focused on regional needs.”

The revised lists will come into effect in February 2018.

Article published 15th December 2017