The PALM scheme was introduced to fill jobs in industries such as agriculture, meat processing and aged care. Photo: ABC News / Lucy Cooper
Concerns are rising that Pacific Island nations may be too dependent on remittances, as temporary worker schemes in wealthier countries become more popular.
Issues around labour mobility schemes have prompted the Samoan government to cap seasonal workers from accessing those programmes.
Prime Minister La'aulialemalietoa (La'auli) Polataivao Leuatea Schmidt told reporters in a news conference that figures provided by the departments are 3000 to New Zealand, 3000 to Australia and 1000 to American Samoa".
"At present, teachers, nurses, police and hospitality workers are leaving and has hindered operations of these sectors nationally," he said.
Australia has made close to a billion dollars from their Pacific Australia Labour Mobility (PALM) scheme in just this summer alone, according to La'auli.
"We must look at this from an even playing field and fairness perspective."
Samoan PM La'aulialemalietoa Polataivao Leuatea Schmidt Photo: Facebook / Government of Samoa
'Bargaining power is not equal', labour expert says
Dr Naren Prasad, an economist with the International Labour Organisation (ILO), said that there was "a clear imbalance" in who benefits from Pacific migrant labour.
Dr Prasad heads up Education and Training across the world with the ILO.
He told RNZ Pacific that Australia and New Zealand were the clear beneficiaries of their respective PALM and Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) schemes.
He said more needed to be done to share the benefits with the Pacific.
"For many families I know, they are life-changing ... but you can see that the bargaining power is not equal," he said.
"Let's be honest, Australia and New Zealand benefit a lot from filling the labour shortages in their own countries."
For Dr Prasad, the consequence of this kind of dependence is a "hollow out" of workers and skills that could be moving island economies towards self-reliance.
"Are we building systems out of workers to return with viable jobs back in Fiji, Samoa, Tonga - or are we normalising this permanent outward dependency?" he asked.
"I grew up in a small village in Fiji. Whenever I go back, I see empty classrooms, health centres, there's shortages of doctors and nurses."
According to Dr Prasad, Samoa receives around AU$240 million each year in remittances, accounting for 30 percent of their Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
The Tongan economy is even more dependent, at 44 percent. Fiji on the other hand brought in a whopping AU$1.1 billion in remittances in the September 2024-25 year.
Prasad argued the key is to build domestic industry so that workers are incentivised to stay, even if it comes at the expense of remittances.
"You have to provide better opportunities for our people to stay better salaries for doctors and nurses, better working conditions, better security, physical security," he said.
