Assimilation, Immigration and the Search for Social Cohesion (What belonging should require of migrants, immigration policy and the wider community)
Immigration is moving towards the centre of New Zealand’s 2026 election debate. The language varies. Some politicians speak about social cohesion. Others say migrants must integrate, assimilate, share New Zealand values or become part of the national community. These words are often used as though their meaning were obvious. It is not. The problem is […]
Is Migrant Worker Exploitation Really What We Think It Is?
We hear a lot about migrant worker exploitation in New Zealand. Governments promise crackdowns. Ministers announce tougher penalties. Employers are named and shamed. The story we’re usually told is simple: a bad employer takes advantage of a vulnerable worker, and the solution is to punish the employer harder. But I think that story is far […]
The Skilled Migrant Changes and New Zealand’s “Permanent Temporary” Workforce
The government says its Skilled Migrant reforms will fix the system. But the deeper problem with New Zealand’s immigration model remains untouched. New changes to the Skilled Migrant Category promise improvements, but they also reveal a deeper problem: an immigration system that increasingly relies on migrant labour while denying many workers a realistic path to […]