Strengths And Struggles: Overseas Qualified Social Workers' Experiences In Aotearoa New Zealand

Abstract

A growing number of professionals practise in a country other than the one where they obtained their professional qualification. A mixed-methods study explored the experiences of one group of such professionals, overseas-qualified social workers practicing in New Zealand. This article reports findings from four key informant group interviews and an online survey (N = 294), including this population's satisfaction with their employment, their introduction to local practice, and experiences of mistreatment and discrimination. The study highlights migrant social workers' desire for better access to information and induction opportunities to orient them to the local practice environment and notes their experience of discrimination in the workplace. Such findings require a thoughtful response from practitioners and professional bodies and is worthy of further research and discussion. We argue that migrant social workers in New Zealand require orientation activities tailored to meet their needs and a more welcoming system of recognition of the skills and experience they bring.

越来越多的专业人士离开他们获得专业资格的国家，到其他国家学以致用。本文使用若干混合的方法研究了这样一群有着海外专业资格却在新西兰从事实践的社会工作者。本文报告了对四个关键信息群体的访谈以及一项在线调查（数目=294），了解了被访者对职业的满意情况、进入地方实践的情况以及经历虐待和歧视的情况。本研着重介绍了外来社会工作者渴望得到信息，渴望得到引导以进入当地的工作环境。本文也谈到了他们在工作场所遭遇的歧视。这些发见需要实践者和专业群体的思考，值得进一步的研究和讨论。在新西兰工作的外来社会工作者需要为他们量身定制的引导活动，需要对他们带来的技巧和经验给予系统的、积极的肯定。

Keywords:

• Social Workers
• Migrant Professionals
• Labour Mobility
• New Zealand

Acknowledgements

As a team, we are grateful to the many professionals who shared their experiences and insights with us, and we look forward to continuing to be involved in the conversations engendered by their border crossing.

Notes

¹ Pseudonyms have been used to protect participant privacy.

² Treaty of Waitangi (1840) between the British Crown and the chiefs of Maori tribes in the North Island of New Zealand. This is generally understood to be New Zealand's founding constitutional document.