Dire Strait: The five jobs Interislander wants on the immigration Green List

Dire Strait is an ongoing investigative series looking at the full saga and inside story of our interisland ferries, how they came to be in such a state of disrepair, and how it’ll all be fixed.

KiwiRail wants five occupations relating to its beleaguered Interislander ferries to be included on the immigration Green List, but none have been added so far.

National’s transport spokesman Simeon Brown has accused Immigration Minister Michael Wood of putting a handbrake on the country’s transport system by not allowing Interislander to access the critical staff it needs.

But Wood said the biggest issue facing the Interislander fleet is years of deferred investment by the previous National-led government.

Mechanical problems and last-minute service cancellations have plagued Interislander and rival operator Bluebridge in recent months, with some stranded passengers resorting to sleeping in their cars and on the floor of a terminal. One Bluebridge passenger called the situation a “total balls-up”.

Interislander’s ships are ageing and will need more maintenance to improve reliability across Cook Strait until two new mega-ferries arrive in 2025 and 2026 to replace them. The Government has invested $430 million in the new ferries.

The job titles KiwiRail would like to see added to the Green List are able-bodied seafarer, motorman, second officer electrical, masters, and electro-technical officer.

They have been revealed following written parliamentary questions by Brown.

The Green List is a list of occupations which are eligible for fast-tracked residency or qualify for a work-to-residence pathway.

Interislander operations general manager Duncan Roy said the jobs KiwiRail wants to be added will continue to be reviewed and amended as required.

“Interislander looks to maintain its workforce and build resilience in it through a mixture of promotion from within, and recruitment both in New Zealand and overseas. A resilient workforce ensures we have the skilled workers we need to successfully manage our assets and meet our customers’ needs.”

A skilled workforce was beneficial to the entire maritime industry in New Zealand, Roy said.

“KiwiRail continues to engage with agencies about getting the roles added to the Green List or other relevant immigration pathways.”

Brown said by not adding these roles to the list, critical transport connections were failing New Zealanders and interrupting supply chains.

“Michael Wood is both Minister of Transport and Minister of Immigration and should be doing everything he can to keep our supply chains moving, rather than his current approach of doing nothing, which is leaving travellers stranded, supply chains disrupted and leaving the Cook Strait crossing as the biggest pothole in State Highway 1.”

But Wood blamed the previous National-led government’s deferred investment in the Interislander fleet for these problems.

“Recent reliability issues are purely a result of this issue, not workforce availability.”

Wood said the Government recognised the crucial role the Cook Strait ferries played in the national supply chain.

“[We] are working with KiwiRail to determine which roles have existing residency pathways and which a residency pathway may assist with recruiting. All roles can currently be recruited into New Zealand through the Accredited Employer Work Visa.”

The next review of the Green List is due in mid 2023.