When coronavirus restrictions began, Simfresh – which produces almost 2 million boxes of citrus annually from farms in NSW and Queensland – was “already ahead of the game” in helping its workers stay healthy and happy during the pandemic, operations manager Luke Cini said.

During the uncertain times of the COVID-19 pandemic, George Brown Bakani and Ratu Duilomaloa sent messages back to their family, friends and villages in Fiji to let them know they were keeping well and they were following the health guidelines to keep safe.

A group of Papua New Guinean (PNG) workers employed at Aussie Orchards in northern NSW have not only helped the farm address its ongoing labour problems, they also stepped up to protect the farm during the bushfire crisis in late 2019.

Simfresh is a family-owned business with farms in New South Wales and Queensland. The company supplies around 1.8 million boxes of citrus each year to the domestic and export markets. After expanding its growing operations, Simfresh found it difficult to source enough workers to meet increased needs.

K&S Contracting specialises in forestry and weed control. The business signed up to the Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS) in 2018 after struggling to find reliable local labour for forestry work. It currently employs 5 Tuvaluans who are now active members of the local community.

As the COVID-19 pandemic took hold in early 2020, people were asked to stay home to stop the spread of the virus. Isoa Tuinasaoalau, from Fiji, sends a message back home to friends and family and shares how the PALM scheme workers found a way to avoid missing church services. Isoa says the workers held their own services at home in Childers, Queensland, getting dressed up in their best clothes, singing songs and sharing Bible verses.

Cowra Meat Processing employs around 200 workers but has struggled to find staff. In 2018, general manager, Peter Browne, visited Samoa to interview workers through the Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS). In early 2019, 7 men from Samoa started work at the processing facility.

Five women from a remote village in the highlands of Papua New Guinea (PNG) have been recruited to pick mandarins at Ironbark Citrus in outback Queensland. Ironbark Citrus joined the Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) in 2012 and also recruits workers from Timor-Leste and Tonga. Working in Australia has been life-changing for the workers.

The Nutrano Produce Group struggled to find workers for its citrus farm in Victoria's Sunraysia district until it joined the Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) in 2017. It now employs a large group of workers from Solomon Islands, some of whom have used their savings to build new houses and a church for their village.

Skybury Tropical Plantation in Mareeba in Queensland joined the Seasonal Worker Programme (SWP) in 2018, recruiting workers from Papua New Guinea (PNG). The managers were so impressed with the workers that they joined the Pacific Labour Scheme (PLS), so they could employ them for longer.