Industry Updates
11 May 2022


Border Update
The Government announced today that as of 11:59pm 31 July 2022, the New Zealand border will be fully reopened. Our border has been subject to significant restrictions over the last two years as we battled through COVID-19, and this announcement will allow us to travel more freely and for those overseas, who wish to visit our great country, to do so with ease. 
Included in today’s announcement is further detail on the ‘Immigration reset’. Due to border restrictions, it has been difficult for the construction industry to fill labour gaps with skilled workers from overseas. The new and updated Accredited Employer Work Visa (AEWV) is being introduced from 4 July 2022. Applications made for workers, which are for urgent short skilled occupations, will be processed within 30 days from this date. There are 85 occupations on the ‘green list’, including construction roles.  Migrants earning twice the median wage will qualify for residence after two years on an accredited employer work visa.
We will be running a webinar for members on the AWEV, presented by MBIE and Immigration NZ, towards the end of May. This webinar will be specific to the construction industry and will include an opportunity for attendees to ask questions directly to these government departments on how the new visa process will operate. You will receive an invite to the webinar once all details have been confirmed. 

Further information on the AEWV can be found here. 

New agreements will be put in place later this year for the construction sector to support the short term or ongoing need to access lower-paid migrants.
 
Construction Sector Accord - Innovation in Construction Webinar
Join the Construction Sector Accord for this free webinar to learn more about why innovation is important for the construction sector, how we are advancing across different industries and some of the current barriers to innovation. Listen to experts from government and industry who will share case studies and advice about some of the technologies and practices that they are championing across our sector. Check out more information here, or register below.

Wednesday 18 May 3.00pm-3.45pm

REGISTER HERE
 
Building Consents – Advocating for Change:
We are being vocal in advocating for change to improve the building consent system to make it more efficient. Dave Kelly was recently interviewed by Radio New Zealand about the issues the sector is facing and what needs to be done. 
Read the article: Master Builders calls for more efficient building consent system.

Staying Motivated – Some Tips and Tricks from Vitae
Call it what you want, we all know the feeling of lacking energy or enthusiasm. Mental health continues to be a significant and concerning issue within the industry. If you want to make things happen, the ability to motivate yourself is a crucial skill. At work, home, and everywhere in between, people use motivation to get results.  Vitae has put together some helpful tips to get you over your slump, which you can read here.

Remember, Master Builders is here 24/7 to support our members. We are continuing to provide our member counselling service, available anytime if you need support. You can call 0508 664 981 and be connected with professional, qualified support. Find out more by clicking here.
We understand this is a stressful time for many people. Please visit the Mates in Construction website for more information or call the national Telehealth Service on 1737. 

AON – Construction Site Theft
Theft from construction sites is unfortunately on the increase. We have been speaking to our insurance partners Aon on what steps you can take to reduce the likelihood of it occurring, and if it did occur, how you ensure that you get the best possible outcome from an insurance claim. Aon has put together a factsheet for you, which you can check out here.

Standards New Zealand Invites Your Feedback
Standards New Zealand is running its biennial customer and stakeholder satisfaction survey and want to hear from anyone who has used or bought a standard, been involved in one of their standards development committees or commissioned their services over the past two years. 
Helping them by completing a short survey can help shape their service and future initiatives. Previous feedback has helped them in updating their website and online shop experience, trialing a digital e-reader platform, and embedding flexible and affordable options for developing standards. The survey closes 24 May.
 
Complete the survey here.