Background to this report 13. While the RSE scheme has provided economic and social benefits to Pacific nations and Aotearoa New Zealand, concerns have been raised about the impact of the scheme on local communities,3 as well as the working and living conditions of RSE workers.4 14. In June 2022, the International Labour Organization (“ILO”), produced a report on Australia’s Seasonal Worker Programme and New Zealand’s RSE scheme through the lens of international human rights and labour standards.5 The ILO recommended that New Zealand undertake a review of the agreements establishing the RSE scheme in consultation with participating Pacific Island Countries, trade unions, workers, employers’ organisations, employers and civil society organizations.6 The ILO also made numerous recommendations to improve compliance with international human rights and labour standards including with regard to pay and pay deductions, leave provisions, accommodation, access to healthcare, membership of trade unions and access to justice.7 15. In January 2022, a key stakeholder in the RSE industry invited the EEO Commissioner to visit an RSE accommodation site to meet workers and listen to their concerns. Following that visit, the Commission has undertaken consultations with RSE workers, employers, industry leaders and other relevant stakeholders connected with the RSE scheme. 16. In these engagements, the Commission inquired into workers’ work and living conditions. The Commission spoke to over 20 RSE workers in Northland and over 60 workers in Marlborough, and visited eight accommodation sites. We also spoke to individuals with links to the RSE scheme in the Hawkes Bay and Otago regions, as well as union representatives, RSE employers, and leaders in the horticulture and viticulture industry. 17. The Commission observed and heard about potential violations of the workers’ human rights under the RSE scheme through exploitation, unreasonable deductions from their pay, denial of personal and cultural freedoms and grossly inadequate housing. 3 See Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment, RSE Impact Study: New Zealand Stream Report https://www.immigration. govt.nz/documents/statistics/rse-impact-study-new-zealand-stream-report.pdf. 4 See Dr Rochelle Bailey, New Zealand’s Recognised Employer Scheme (RSE), 10 YEAR LONGITUDINAL CASE STUDY, 2019 Australian National University Department of Pacific Affairs; Amalgamated Workers Union Aotearoa New Zealand, Education and Workforce Committee Inquiry into Migrant Exploitation, 2022, https://www.immigration.govt.nz/documents/statistics/rseimpact-study-new-zealand-stream-report.pdf. 5 International Labour Organization, Seasonal worker schemes in the Pacific through the lens of international human rights and labour standards, Technical report https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---asia/---ro-bangkok/---ilo-suva/documents/ publication/wcms_847010.pdf. The review consisted of two components: (1) Legal reviews of the schemes with respect to migration policies and laws governing the schemes in light of human rights and labour standards; and (2) Review of the two schemes in practice, particularly from the point of view of the seasonal workers themselves. The review included 121 individual interviews with seasonal workers in Fiji, Kiribati, Samoa and Vanuatu, who had participated in the schemes since 2018. 52% of interviewees has worked in New Zealand. 6 At p. 154. 7 See recommendations from p. 158. 5