Expat construction workers rebuilding New Zealand’s earthquake stricken city of Christchurch need protecting from unscrupulous and crooked bosses, claims a union.
First Union is calling for the Earthquake Recovery Commission to bar firms guilty of taking advantage of expat workers after revealing a catalogue of exploitation.
The union says officials have had to step in to stop bosses abuses their position over workers.
Spokesman Dennis Maga accused small firms acting as sub-contractors for bigger construction companies as the worst offenders – and called on the government to outlaw expat exploitation as a crime.
The New Zealand government is already drafting laws to restrict how employers treat expats.
Shocking claims
The union has made some shocking claims about bad treatment of workers, including:
- 40 employees unpaid for working Saturdays – but the union declined to shame the boss as the matter was resolved on condition the firm was not named
- Another sub-contractor is in a tussle with the union over 15 employees saying they had not been paid for nearly three months.
The union argues responsibility for looking after the rights of expat workers should shift to main contractors as their sub-contractors can just close overnight and restart trading under another name within days.
“These people should be banned for taking financial advantage of workers,” said Maga. “Big firms should man up and not give lucrative contracts to these cowboys and the government should make avoiding employee rights under these circumstances.”
The government and employers in Christchurch are united in their condemnation of rogue construction contractors, but has so far stopped short of agreeing a code of conduct with the union.
New laws in pipeline
An Immigration Amendment Bill is before the New Zealand parliament to tackle the issue. If passed, the new law could allow courts to jail rogue employers for up to seven years and impose fines of up to £50,000.
Immigration Minister Michael Woodhouse has agreed expats working on the construction project had problems.
He said he had had reports about expats receiving below minimum wage payments, having to work overtime without pay and having their passports taken by employers.
The earthquake struck Christchurch in February 2011, killing 185 people, injuring around 2,000 more and destroying thousands of buildings and the city’s infrastructure.
The city had been hit only six months earlier by another earthquake that caused extensive damage.
Christchurch is New Zealand’s second city, with a population of around 380,000.
Construction work is expected to continue for a decade and cost an estimated £20 billion.
