A 54-year-old Havelock North man is on trial in the Napier District Court, accused of hiring illegal labour to pick apples in Hawke's Bay over a four-year period.
David Wang, who was a horticulture contractor, faces 11 charges under the Immigration Act of aiding and abetting eight people to remain in
New Zealand unlawfully or breach the conditions of their permits between 2003 and 2007.
Wang pleaded not guilty to all the charges at the start of a three-day jury trial in the Napier District Court yesterday.
The Crown witnesses - seven Chinese citizens and one Indonesian who were all illegal workers - have been allowed to stay and work in New Zealand for over two years while waiting for the trial to start.
The Crown alleges Wang employed them to pick apples knowing they were not permitted to work.
Prosecutor Clayton Walker told the jury of seven men and five women that the shortage of workers in Hawke's Bay had provided Wang with an "incentive".
"There is an incentive to use people who are not legally entitled to work. There is this market for illegal workers."
Mr Walker said Wang, by supplementing his workforce with illegal workers, was able to meet the demands of growers and gain contracts.
Wang told his workers they should be careful of police and immigration officers.
To that end he placed some of them in rural accommodation at one point because he thought it would be more difficult for them to be detected.
Mr Walker also said he provided them with false details to give to the authorities.
Jun Luo told the court, through an interpreter, that he arrived in New Zealand in January 2002 on a visitor's permit before travelling to Hastings six months later to find work picking apples.
He contacted Wang after reading an advertisement in a newspaper and met him at a Hastings house, which he shared with nine other people.
Mr Luo said he told Wang he was on a visitor's permit but was given work in Waipawa picking apples in March, 2003.
He drove to Wang's office in Hastings every week to collect his pay which was handed to him in cash in an envelope.
Mr Luo said he paid 20 per cent "tax" on his earnings even though he did not have an IRD number.
He said that, through Wang, he also obtained work in Blenheim and Te Puke.
(Proceeding)
