Migrant Nurses Face Barriers to Finding Jobs in New Zealand

Is there no end to the government’s incompetence? In this immigration news in NZ, hundreds of qualified international nurses, especially from India, are stuck in the limbo of New Zealand's bureaucratic mess, jobless despite a dire nursing shortage. They’ve jumped through all the hoops – from undertaking the Competence Assessment Programme (CAP) to registering with the Nursing Council – yet they're still left out in the cold. This isn’t just an oversight; it's a colossal failure of planning and foresight.

Take Litty Liju, a nurse with twelve years' experience. She uprooted her life, moving her family to New Zealand, only to be thwarted by an absurd system that refuses to sponsor her work visa. She’s applied for over 500 positions, but without that elusive visa, it’s a brick wall. Imagine the frustration, the helplessness. Her kids can’t go to school, her husband, an accountant, can’t work. It's a textbook case of bureaucratic red tape stifling skilled professionals who are desperately needed.

And it’s not just Litty. Akhil Venugopal, a surgical nurse, finds himself in the same boat. He’s applied for 400 jobs but keeps hitting the same snag – no sponsorship, no job. Despite spending $35,000 to get here, he’s left dangling on a one-year visitor visa that’s about to expire.

This absurdity is underlined by the fact that Te Whatu Ora data shows over a quarter of nursing shifts in hospitals fell short of staffing targets last year. So, while hospitals are crying out for staff, here we have a pool of skilled nurses ready and willing to work, but stymied by immigration red tape.

The NZNO’s Saju Cherian conducted a survey revealing over 400 nurses in the lower North Island alone are in this predicament. Nationally, that number could be as high as 1,000. Yet, the Nursing Council’s response is a nonchalant shrug – they register these nurses but can't do anything about their employment.

It’s a dire scenario that highlights a severe disconnect between policy and reality. These nurses, who have invested heavily both emotionally and financially, are left in a cruel limbo.

Incompetence or indifference? Either way, it’s the same story of a government failing to act when action is most needed. Leadership is absent, urgency is non-existent, and the result is a healthcare system teetering on the brink. We need action, not more empty promises and ineptitude.

And that's the immigration news for today. Follow and subscribe for more immigration content like this. Ka Kite Ano.