It’s been six weeks since Roger Kopoken shifted to the Northland town of Kaikohe from the Philippines to fill a job that’d been advertised for months.

By 1News’ Laura James and Thomas Mead

He’s come with more than 10 years of experience, something his new boss at Gas & Tyre Northland couldn’t be happier about.

“We needed to get skilled workers. Going locally we weren’t getting the buy-in or the applicants applying,” Brendon Reyburn said.

“[Roger] is perfectly ready to pick up the tools and get stuck in.”

He said their customers are already noticing the difference.

The influx of overseas workers, like Kopoken, is believed to be behind a rise in employment, seen in new Stats NZ’s business employment data.

The figures show a 2.8% increase in hires in the March quarter, compared to the same period last year.

Kiwibank chief economist Jarrod Kerr expects we’ll only see that growth continue.

“We’re likely to see net migration pick up towards around 100,000 in the coming months… most of them are aged between 20 and 35, so they’re high participants and they’re keen to get involved.”

While it’s great news for Kiwi businesses, Kerr said it’s putting extra pressure on the economy.

More people, there’s more demand for almost everything — particularly housing — we have a shortage of housing in this country, and we’re now adding more people in, so that shortage is going to get worse.”

But Canterbury University economics expert Andrea Mencolva said there’s no need to hold back.

They have the expertise to help us fix things and so I wouldn’t be waiting for it to be done and then we let immigrants in. I would let immigrants in and then engage them in the rebuild.

“The net benefits of immigrants are just very large and positive and so often times people wonder whether they take a slice of our cake, but they help us make a much better, bigger cake in return.

Recruit NZ director Tanya Grey has been working with employers right across the workforce, who’ve all been forced to look overseas to fill vacant positions.

“We’ve had 30 class 5 truck and trailer drivers recruited, we’ve had bus drivers recruited, welders, estimators, CAD operators, carpenters, tile setters.

Kopoken found his job through her firm. He’s loving his new life in Northland.

“Kaikohe is great, it’s a good time,” he said.

He hopes his family can join him here one day, praising the the Kiwi culture, weather and pay.