Ngāti Kahungunu Iwi chairperson Bayden Barber says iwi should play a pivotal role in providing wraparound services for seasonal workers from the Pacific employed in the country's food production sector.
His concerns come after a television investigation exposed the poor working and living conditions of those in Aotearoa under the Registered Seasonal Employer scheme.
He told teaomaori.news that, while some employers have treated seasonal workers poorly, including in Hawke's Bay, Ngāti Kahungunu has been working closely with local food growers to help create adequate conditions for their employers.
"Kua piritahi mai rātou me te whakaaro ki a rātou 'anei te kounga o te manaaki me whai e koutou. Mehemea ka haere ēnei ki roto o Ngāti Kahungunu, anei te taumata me eke koutou'."
(They've come on board and we've said to them 'this is what care looks like. If you're bringing these workers into Ngāti Kahungunu territory, this is the standard that you need to meet'.')
He says in the past some of the workers have been accommodated in barrack-type housing but Ngāti Kahungunu has encouraged local employers to consider building homes familiar to those workers from Samoa, Vanuatu and Fiji, while also providing support on how to cope in a foreign country for the first time.
"Ko te taha ki te whakapau moni, te waipiro ērā mahi tūkino nei he tauhou ēnei hunga ki ēnei mahi. Ko te manaaki me te whakaako me pēhea rā te haere i roto i tēnei ao hou ki a rātou."
(When it comes to things like what to do with their money, alcohol and all those negative things, it can be totally foreign to them. So we need to know how to support and teach them how to navigate in this new world they find themselves in.")
Barber says local community groups need to also assist in supporting RSE workers.
"Ko te hāhi tētahi mea nui mō tēnei hunga. Nō reira ko te mahi tuatahi kia piri atu rātou ki ērā hāhi, ki ērā minita, ki ērā whānau. Ehara i te mea kei te noho tāpoi rātou, kāo. Ko tō mātou hiahia kia noho tuturu ai rātou ki waenganui i te hapori."
(Church is a big thing to these workers. So we need to ensure they have that connection to their church, to those ministers, to those families. These workers aren't just visiting the region as tourists do. We want them to feel like valued members of our communities.)
