URGENT ADVICE re JOB

[JanetteB]

Can anyone please give some advice on the following: A friends daughter was offered a job in NZ in writing with a sighned 2 year contract, got Work Visa. When arrived in NZ to start the job, was told job no longer available.
She is still in NZ but does not know what to do. Is affraid to get hold of immigration to try & sort the problem out as she is affraid of being told she has to leave. Surely the Employer has acted illegally & can she not report them & to who.
And also surely she would not have been given a Work Visa had the job offer not been in order.
Will appreciate any advice.

[Ana&Steve]

That is really frustrating I don't have the answers, but I think being in the country illegally would be very bad for her. Even though she is scared to, if she can't find answers elsewhere she may want to call immigration and see how long she has to legally be here. Maybe there is another visa she can get, like a working holiday visa, to give her time to find another job. Good luck to her.

[indo_americano]

Very sorry to hear that.. hope this link might be of some help on evaluating her chances

http://www.immigration.govt.nz/migra...rs/default.htm

[christos]

That is really frustrating I don't have the answers, but I think being in the country illegally would be very bad for her. Even though she is scared to, if she can't find answers elsewhere she may want to call immigration and see how long she has to legally be here. Maybe there is another visa she can get, like a working holiday visa, to give her time to find another job. Good luck to her.

Why she is illegally in the country??! I understood that she got Work Visa for 2 years (after signed contract)! Immigration has to protect people from these situations.

Maybe someone else can ask immigration for her what to do.

[JandM]

christos, because a work visa issued because of a job offer is linked to ONLY that job. If the job falls through (as in this case), or the person starts it but is sacked, their position with INZ is no longer in order. As mentioned in the links given by indo_americano, there is some leeway given to allow the person to find another job of the same skill level, if they can, and get their visa changed to that new one, but otherwise, they will have to leave, or change to a visitor's visa if that is available in their own particular circumstances, to give them a bit longer to try to sort something out.

I agree with previous posters - this young woman HAS to go to INZ, to sort out the visa situation. That is a separate issue from what ought to be done about the employer who has let her down. She can perhaps get advice from the NZ Citizens' Advice about that. As you say she has a contract (and it must have been a full one to have got her the work visa), there may well be some redress for her under NZ law. But that's a secondary point - regularizing her position with the authorities is much more important.

[Sun777]

To be honest, INZ will find you some day or the other so its best to contact them directly and explain the situation. indo_americano and JandM have provided rest of the information.

[edw123]

http://www.hrmonline.co.nz/article/r...hr-141542.aspx

She can make a legal challenge against said company for withdrawing the offer.

Technically if she had a written offer, than an employer/employee relationship exists between her and the company, so at the time of travel, visa is still valid.

What has happened is other party has now terminated said relationship, so that person will be in exactly the same position of anyone else when their employment ends somewhere whilst they have an existing work visa. Unsure of this, but presumably conditions will be in the VISA.

Other area is grey really, unsure if she'd be given additional time by immigration to challenge the decision through employment tribunal; my suggestion would be though is she lines up exactly what she intends to do before chatting to immigration directly.