Families in Samoa appreciate the remittances that loved ones living abroad send every week or every fortnight, including family members working as part of a labour mobility program in Australia or New Zealand. Those on seasonal work programs make enormous sacrifices being away from home for so long, driven by their desire to improve the living standards of their families on the islands. 

Remittances also continue to be the mainstay of the Samoan economy, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic over the last three years, enabling families directly impacted by the pandemic through loss of income or loss of employment to have access to cash in these tough times.

To give more context to the issue in terms of the significance of remittances in Samoa, in June last year, remittances sent and received in Samoa totalled SAT$72.2 million. It was 40 per cent more than the same period in the previous year and was an increase of 6.8 per cent or SAT$4.6 million from the previous month, according to a Samoa Government report.

Last December an Asian Development Bank (ADB) report focused on 12 Pacific economies described the impact of remittances in Samoa and Tonga as “safety nets” during the pandemic.

"The recent increase in remittances has been a key mitigating factor against the socioeconomic impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic," reads the report. "With the reopening of borders by Samoa and Tonga, labour migration has resumed, bringing with it the opportunity for further remittance growth. 

"Labor mobility programs and diaspora links will continue to be central to the development of these countries. Migration has played a hugely important role, but comes with challenges that must be managed."

So there is a lot to be thankful for in the flow of remittances to our island nations and its positive effects on families and loved ones. 

But revelations by an article (Samoan fruit pickers in ‘modern slavery’ allegations) in yesterday’s edition of the Samoa Observer has again put the spotlight on the welfare of our seasonal workers while they are working abroad.

The article has reported that the Australian authorities have revoked the license of a seasonal worker's employer Linx Employment over its treatment of 200-plus contracted fruit pickers from the Pacific including Samoa. Australia's Department of Employment and Workplace Relations (DEWR) is currently meeting with over 200 Linx workers across the country, Pacnews reports, to assist them in finding ongoing employment and accommodation. Diplomats from Samoa, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea (PNG) have also been informed of the developments at Linx. The Australian Workers Union (AWU) National Secretary Paul Farrow, according to the report, claimed Linx’s business model amounts to modern slavery. Attempts by the Samoa Observer on Monday to get a comment from the Minister of Commerce, Industry and Labour, Leatinuu Wayne Fong whose Ministry manages the Samoa Government's seasonal work schemes were unsuccessful.

The reference in the story to Samoan and other Pacific Island diplomats being advised of the situation at Linx Employment sounds reassuring. But how long will this process of resettlement and accommodation of the affected seasonal workers by Australia’s DEWR take? 

First things first, we appreciate the intervention by the Australian authorities and their attempts to get the Pacific Island nations’ workers to resettle elsewhere. But we remained concerned at their non-employment status while they await assistance from the Australian authorities for deployment to another work site. 

Don’t Samoa Government leaders think it is important to bring back those Samoan seasonal workers who are unable to immediately find employment back to the island? At least here they have the security and support of their aiga (family) here on the island, away from the harsh realities of living in an Australian cosmopolitan city, where life can be so tough.

It would be great if the Samoa Government can give an update on fellow citizens currently working in Australia who’ve now been directly affected by the exit of Linx Employment last week.

The revelations of the ill-treatment of the Pacific seasonal workers in Tasmania also raise questions about the Samoa Government’s official seasonal worker policy and what it entails for potential workers. We understand a draft copy of the proposed policy was tabled in the Cabinet for its deliberations but are yet to be advised of an official launching by the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Labour. 

Due to the vital role of remittances in Samoa’s economy, any further delays in unveiling details on the official policy will only become a disincentive for those aspiring to join the programs and contribute to building their own families’ wealth and prosperity.