Registration for seasonal work in Australia and New Zealand is on hold until August, the Ministry of Commerce Industry and Labour says.

The M.C.I.L. Chief Executive Officer, Pulotu Lyndon Chu Ling, told the Samoa Observer the registration of seasonal workers is on hold for now and will resume in two months time.

He gave the timeline for the registration as hundreds of people assembled in front of the ACB building at Apia on Wednesday to pick up registration forms from the Ministry’s staff.

“Applicants are only here to uplift their registration form downstairs but seasonal worker registration like the one that was held before will be in August,” Pulotu said in an interview.

“The Ministry is working on preparing registration booths but for now applicants are welcome to come to the office and uplift their registration forms.”

Tables were also set up in front of the ACB building for the M.C.I.L. staff to distribute the forms to prospective applicants.

Basic requirements for those who register is that the applicant should be between 21 and 40 years of age, have police clearance and possess a medical report declaring him or her fit to partake in the program.

Unlike the chaos over two weeks ago, when over 3,000 people converged on the Congregational Christian Church of Samoa Hall at Sogi to register triggering a melee with several sustaining injuries, those who turned up at the ACB building to pick up forms were more orderly. 

Tele’a Mauga, a 27-year-old applicant, told the Samoa Observer that he is applying in order to get a job to secure his family’s future amidst the country’s economic crisis. 

“The reason why I am applying as a seasonal worker is to provide for my family. Also, the cost of living in Samoa is high,” he said. 

“I want to provide for my family financially and a better future for them also for my church and village.

“I am living with my five siblings and parents, being the eldest of our family I am motivated to work as a seasonal worker so I could provide for their daily needs.”

Another prospective applicant, 31-year-old Senio Senio of Fasitoo Uta said he’s applying as he sees seasonal work as a solution to secure his family’s well being. 

“The pay rate of a seasonal worker will meet the cost of living here in Samoa and I will put in all my effort and work hard to get my full pay to send back to my family in Samoa,” he said in an interview. 

“Even if I have to leave my family back in Samoa, I am more concerned about their well-being and their future.”