Ivan Miller is earning $1500 a week picking fruit in Otago orchards, but growers are worried they may not have sufficient staff for the rest of the season.
The Central Otago summerfruit harvest is being hampered by some growers only having half the number of staff they had last year.
Summerfruit NZ is warning fruit will be left unpicked and the fear is the labour shortage will worsen once students return to study.
Border closures and low unemployment has created the shortage, prompting Summerfruit NZ chief executive Kate Hellstrom to work with horticulture product groups and government departments to find ways to attract and retain seasonal workers.
“We ask that where possible, growers club together to make best use of available labour,” Hellstrom said in a statement.
One suggestion is that Work and Income extend assistance for accommodation and the relocation for people wanting to work.
Cromwell grower Trudi Webb said she is nervous about staff availability in February and March and says many growers offer accommodation and have lifted pay rates to attract workers.
CentralPac operations manager Tim Hope said the end of season bonus has been doubled to $1.50 a bucket to try and retain staff.
CentralPac helped Ivan Miller, currently working his second season as a fruit picker, get assistance to relocate through Work and Income.
He is earning $1500 for a 40-hour week picking fruit.
“That’s not bad money for an old fella like me, though I know some pickers who have made more than $2000,” Miller said.
