The work experiences of migrant process workers in the meat industry in Otago, New Zealand

The New Zealand meat industry is one of the largest contributors towards the success of the economy. It provides employment for a wide range of people comprising of local and migrant workers. The aim of this research is to explore the work experience of migrant process workers in the meat industry in Otago, New Zealand. To achieve this aim, four key objectives were set out which includes the reason behind the migration of migrant meat workers, the perceived workplace challenges, access to equal employment opportunities and the social relationships amongst the co-workers at the workplace. An interpretivism philosophy was used for this research and data was collected through two focus groups. The data was analysed using thematic analysis where seven themes emerged from the findings and they were categorised under the research objectives. The first objective was based on the reason behind the movement of meat workers to New Zealand. The second objective focused on their perceived workplace challenges which included language barriers, changing job responsibilities, aging workforce, and work ethics. The third objective identified that the participants had access to equal employment opportunities with the aid of trade unions. The last objective explains how social isolationaffects their social relationship with the co-workers and can lead to homesickness. It is recommended to conduct future studies on other meat industries around New Zealand and to have a large sample size on different aspects relating to meat workers to have a more detailed understanding of the meat industry