New Zealand horticulture runs on seasonal labour, and the Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme is the mechanism that supplies a large part of it. For growers in Hawke’s Bay, the Bay of Plenty, Marlborough and Central Otago, RSE workers are not a supplement to the workforce — in peak season they frequently are the workforce.
What the scheme is
The RSE scheme allows approved employers in horticulture and viticulture to recruit workers from Pacific countries for seasonal work when there are not enough New Zealanders available. It operates on a set of reciprocal expectations: employers get access to a reliable seasonal workforce, and in exchange accept obligations around pay, accommodation, pastoral care and return travel that go well beyond ordinary employment law.
The scheme has run for close to two decades and is generally regarded as one of the more successful seasonal work schemes internationally. It has also been the subject of sustained scrutiny, and the compliance settings have tightened as a result.
Becoming an RSE employer
RSE status is granted by Immigration New Zealand and must be applied for. Approval requires demonstrating that you are a genuine employer in the sector, financially sound, compliant with employment and immigration law, and able to meet the pastoral care obligations.
Once approved, an employer must obtain an Agreement to Recruit for each season, specifying numbers and roles, before workers can be recruited. The process runs on a seasonal cycle and needs to be started well ahead of when workers are needed.
The obligations that come with it
These are the parts that catch new entrants, because they extend past the employment relationship into welfare:
- Guaranteed minimum hours and pay at or above the rate specified for the scheme, which has generally sat above the adult minimum wage.
- Suitable accommodation, with costs that must be reasonable and are subject to review. Accommodation standards are actively inspected.
- Pastoral care — orientation, access to health services, banking, transport, and support with day-to-day life in New Zealand.
- Contribution to travel costs and responsibility for ensuring workers return home at the end of the season.
- Health insurance arrangements for the duration of the placement.
- Record-keeping covering hours, deductions, accommodation charges and pastoral care activity.
Deductions are the single most common area of non-compliance. Accommodation and transport charges must be reasonable, agreed in writing, and must not take pay below the required minimum. Employers have been found in breach for deductions that seemed modest individually but cumulatively reduced take-home pay below the threshold.
Why compliance has tightened
Reviews of the scheme have identified issues with accommodation standards, deductions and pastoral care in a minority of operations, and the response has been increased monitoring, unannounced site visits and more willingness to suspend or revoke employer status.
Loss of RSE status is commercially severe for a grower who has built their labour model around it, and it can follow from breaches that were administrative rather than deliberate. The scheme rewards employers who document what they do.
The domestic workforce requirement
RSE is predicated on New Zealanders not being available, and employers are expected to make genuine efforts to recruit domestically first, including engaging with the Ministry of Social Development. Documenting those efforts is part of the obligation, not a formality.
Practical guidance for growers
- Start the seasonal application cycle early; late applications are the most common cause of labour shortfall.
- Have accommodation inspected and documented before workers arrive, not after a complaint.
- Put every deduction in writing, agreed in advance, and check the net pay position against the required minimum.
- Keep pastoral care records — orientation completed, medical access arranged, issues raised and resolved.
- Treat the domestic recruitment requirement seriously and keep the evidence.
Immigration New Zealand publishes the RSE requirements, employer obligations and application processes at immigration.govt.nz, and industry bodies including New Zealand Apples and Pears, New Zealand Winegrowers and Horticulture New Zealand publish practical guidance for members.
General information only. Scheme settings change between seasons — confirm current requirements with Immigration New Zealand.
