Cabinet has approved the selection criteria for the 30 pilot workers including other Fijian workers to be recruited under the New Zealand Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) work scheme through the Foreign Employment Service of the National Employment Centre.
The New Zealand RSE Work Policy is a policy that facilitates the temporary entry of additional workers from overseas to fill labour shortages in the horticulture and viticulture industries in New Zealand.
Cabinet based its decision on a submission by the Minister for Employment, Productivity and Industrial Relations, Hon Jioji Konrote.
The Minister said that in determining the selection criteria for the New Zealand RSE work scheme, Government is fully committed to ensure that the selection of candidates is done in a transparent, fair and inclusive process that devoid of nepotism and corruption.
“To ensure that the selection process is transparent, the Ministry has developed two sets of Selection Criteria to be fulfilled by prospective applicants before a final Barrel Selection is executed to determine the successful applicants for overseas employment under the New Zealand RSE work scheme.
“Under the General Criteria, Fijian nationals interested for overseas employment must first register with the National Employment Centre (NEC), must be Unemployed, must be living in the Rural setting, must hold a National Medical Card issued by Ministry of Health, must possess a valid Fiji Passport, have Police Clearance and hold a clean Police Record, have a general health Medical Clearance, be of good character, must be English Literate, must have some skills in agro-farming (etc.), reside in Fiji, must be accountable and a team player, must be Honest and hardworking, and must have the clearance to travel overseas. As the New Zealand RSE targets low skilled workers, applicants with minimal education background are encouraged to apply.
“Under the second set of selection criteria which is the specific criteria, workers must pass Physical fitness tests, pass the Rapid Upper Limp Assessment, have acceptable BMI (Body Mass Index: <29), pass Stress / ECG tests, pass Lung function tests, pass Eye tests (colour vision), pass Ear tests (audiometry) and have occupational medical clearance by a Doctor to be specified by the Ministry of Employment.”
The Minister emphasized that to be considered for the selection process, an applicant must fulfill two basic requisites, namely to be registered with the National Employment Centre for overseas employment, and hold a valid Fiji Passport.
The Minister also cautioned against recruiters who were taking money from people on the pretext of acquiring them a place under the RSE scheme.
He stated that those wishing to be considered under the scheme must apply through the Ministry of Employment, Industrial Relations and Productivity, and not go through any other external parties.
DEPTFO