A top hospitality trainer says Wellington will suffer a culinary shortfall for the World Cup. Capital Times investigates why there is a shortage of hospitality, IT, electrical, and nursing staff while Wellington’s youth unemployment sits at 22.5%.

THE Wellington region’s largest trainer of hospitality workers warns city restaurants are doomed for the Rugby World Cup – they won’t have enough chefs.
Cherie Freeman, head of the hospitality school at WelTec, says restaurants will struggle to cope with the influx of visitors next year.
“We are absolutely in trouble for the World Cup. WelTec can’t meet the demand for chefs in one year’s time, and I don’t know how we’re going to cope,” says Freeman.
Wellington’s restaurants are already screaming out for more qualified staff and can’t take people from other under pressure regions in New Zealand.
“I get a lot of grief from restaurateurs saying ‘Why aren’t you training enough people?’”
Hospitality Association of New Zealand CEO Bruce Robertson says demand for chefs has long outstripped supply, and to cope during the World Cup the city needs to bring in overseas chefs.
However, immigration services are denying migrant chefs work permits because unemployment records show Wellington has an oversupply of chefs, and migrant chefs in employment are having their work permits revoked.
“This is a real problem because it’s a challenge to find replacements,” says Robertson.
HANZ is working closely with Immigration Services and the Department of Labour to clear up the confusion.
“The migrant chefs are not displacing New Zealanders,” Robertson says.
Freeman says, “The records WINZ have show people saying they ‘might like to be a chef’; not that they are fully qualified”.
In the meantime the latest Statistics New Zealand unemployment rate for 15-19 year-olds in Wellington has risen to 22.5%.
Several factors stop the polytechnic from producing enough chefs.
“Chefs” are included in the government’s Long Term Skill Shortage List, but funding to WelTec’s hospitality school has been capped and numbers limited.
Graduates from WelTec need experience in a kitchen to become a Sous Chef, who is second in command in a kitchen.
At a Sous Chef level income can top $80 thousand.
However, 85% of the industry in Wellington is “small kitchen establishments” with five people or fewer, which offer lower wages, and those who end up in smaller kitchens are drawn to Australia for better pay.
The shortage of qualified chefs appears symptomatic of larger skilled labour shortages in Wellington.
The Electricity Supply Industry Training Organisation (ESITO) CEO Tim Densem says a lack of investment means foreigners are filling vacant jobs.
“One company just brought in 55 Philippine workers, because line mechanics are on the government’s Long Term Skill Shortage List. Those are jobs and apprenticeships New Zealanders could have had – but with no incentives a company can’t risk it,” says Densem.
ESITO is down 28% on apprenticeships from last year, and Densem says that will hurt the country when the economy starts to pick up.
“In two years time we will be short of tradesmen, and will need to bring in a new wave of migrants.”
Densem says linesmen earn good wages in NZ, but unlike Australia there are no strong government incentives for taking on apprentices.
“It’s a highly skilled workforce, and we have to compete with Australian government policy. It’s about priorities, the Australian model is there, and if you look at our levels of youth unemployment you know why we have a shortfall.”
“Apprentices are absolutely critical to building strong infrastructure.”
To get the work done Densem says the industry follows “a well worn path” of net migration of New Zealanders overseas to chase higher wages, and immigration here for the same purpose.
Densem says with “ballooning government debt” juggling workers is the reality the industry has to face.
He says other industries, such as Nursing and IT, have similar staff shortfalls.
If you have had issues gaining an apprenticeship, or are a migrant struggling to find work, email editorial@captimes.co.nz