[IMA ASIA PACIFIC - STATEMENT] Justice for ELE workers!

Statement of IMA Asia Pacific in support of the ELE migrant workers’ campaign

24th Jan 2024

The International Migrants Alliance Asia-Pacific (IMA-AP) and its members express its full support in calling for the New Zealand government to decouple visas from single employers to prevent migrant workers’ exploitation as initiated by the Migrant Action Trust (MAT) and fellow advocates, Union Network of Migrants (UNEMIG) NZ, and International Migrants Alliance New Zealand chapter.

This call to action has become increasingly urgent, after more than 500 Filipino migrant workers abruptly lost their jobs last December 2023 as their employer the ELE group, a major labour hire and recruitment firm, went into receivership. Dennis Maga from First Union has stated that more than 100 of those workers had been offered new jobs, but are waiting to apply for new visas. This waiting period has been extremely frustrating for the applicants who have now been out of a job for almost two months, and are struggling to survive and support their families overseas.

The groups calling for the revising of the employer sponsored work visa hold that this is an unnecessary and completely avoidable suffering that must be addressed immediately. One recommendation forwarded by the supporting groups is to attach the work visa to skills or occupations, rather than a single employer to enable more freedom for migrant workers to leave exploitative workplaces.

The IMA-AP also fully supports the call for a review to investigate labour hire companies that recruit vulnerable workers without guaranteeing work. Mikee Santos from Unemig and First Union has stated, "This massive case should prompt the Government to review the employment practices of labour hire companies that are allowed to recruit hundreds, if not thousands of migrant workers to work in New Zealand but cannot guarantee work."

Lastly, the IMA-AP supports the call made by Migrante Aotearoa and its advocates for the Philippine government to expedite emergency funds not only for selected ELE workers, but all workers affected by the closure. Migrant workers are the backbone of both countries’ economies, and as such the countries have an obligation to look after them.

A protest organised by Migrante Aotearoa and supporting groups was held outside the Philippine Embassy in Wellington this month calling for better support for the Filipino workers. The Philippine ambassador refused to comment and instead, the protestors were met with five police cars. This incident, along with both the Philippine and New Zealand governments’ refusal to comment on this dismissal case has exposed where their interests truly lie, which is not with the migrant workers.

The IMA-AP will continue to work with all supporting groups to further expose both governments’ mistreatment of migrant workers, and amplify their calls towards a just society.