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The Otago Daily Times reported recently that the pay packets of the New Zealand's 22,000 meat workers will be thousands of dollars lighter this year with their seasonal jobs likely to be cut short by up to seven weeks because of falling sheep numbers. The current season started up to five weeks later than usual and is likely to end two or three weeks early. At some processing plants, work weeks are shorter and overtime is not available.
Meat workers union national secretary, Dave Eastlake, told the paper that the number of lambs processed so far this season was 18% behind the same time last year, and the new calendar year had also started slowly. "January is usually full on, but depending on the weather, can be a bit difficult. This seems to be one of those years." While lamb numbers have been declining in the country once known for its huge sheep population, that is only partly to blame for the lost income. While many farmers have fewer lambs to sell, the shortage has pushed up the price they receive, from an $80-a-lamb average last year to around $100 this season.
Gary Davis, the Otago-Southland secretary of the Meat Worker s Union was quoted as saying meat workers were pawns in an industry that was dysfunctional. The union has been working with the Ministry of Social Development to find work for its members during the off season, particularly in the dairy and horticultural industries. This means less opportunity for migrant workers who typically fill these roles. Davis believes that with seasons shortening workers may leave meat processing all together; "How long can they last in an industry when they get three to four months' work?"
