Owner of BOSTOCK New Zealand, John Bostock, says New Zealanders always come first when it comes to employment. “The key for us is getting New Zealanders into full time employment rather than just seasonal jobs and we are helping up-skill our seasonal staff to give them more opportunity, but we are challenged by a labour shortage in New Zealand because there are not enough Kiwi’s available to meet the peak season demand, so it is great that we can bring in labour from other countries to help get the fruit off the trees at the crucial times.

“The RSE scheme helps so many families throughout the Pacific Islands as the money earned here is put back into their communities. It also enables BOSTOCK New Zealand to build a business that can create fulltime roles for Kiwis too.”

BOSTOCK New Zealand employs just under 300 RSE workers some arriving in November and others in February. They can each save up to $9000, which they take home and use to invest in things like schooling, building improvements, local churches, purchasing land, homes and businesses. It provides all its RSE workers with accommodation and transport.

"We have between 80-85% returnee rate and I think that boils down to how we treat our RSE workers and the good wages they can earn here in New Zealand," Bostock said.

The New Zealand RSE scheme started in 2007. It allows approved employers to recruit workers from designated countries and has been credited with improving confidence in the fruit sector, which had difficulty in attracting labour for short periods of time. 

BOSTOCK New Zealand's seasonal workers are currently thinning the apple trees, weeding and preparing for the apple harvest which starts in late February.