Many in urban areas lack perseverance needed for Seasonal Workers Scheme - Usamate

There is a focus to choose those who live away from the urban areas for the Seasonal Workers Scheme.

This was highlighted in Parliament by the Employment Minister Jone Usamate when asked by Fiji First MP Jilila Kumar on how the Fijian Seasonal Workers are selected for New Zealand and Australia and the possibility of being a returning worker.

Usamate says in the past the Ministry of Employment found that too many people from the urban areas did not have the perseverance to be able to work consistently for a few months.

He says there were quite a number of people from the work ready pool that went to Australia in particular and they absconded and ran away from the worker.

He says because of that, the former Minister for Employment had decided that they change the policy and focus the program more towards those out in the rural and maritime areas and those who live far away and do not have any other way of getting a formal income.

Usamate says there are no taxes paid to the Fijian Government by the seasonal workers.

He highlighted this when asked by Opposition MP Mikaele Leawere if there are any deductions made from what the workers earn, when they are in Australia and New Zealand under the Seasonal Workers Program.

When asked by SODELPA MP Aseri Radrodro if the ministry has the necessary monitoring infrastructure to monitor that the workers that are sent out are not abused by the employers overseas, Usamate says they feel assured because these countries are doing their own assessments on the recruitment process.