Coronavirus: Ngāi Tahu Tourism may lay off 300 workers

Thursday, 23 April 2020

The impact of Covid-19 has forced Ngāi Tahu Tourism to consider laying off 300 workers.

An email sent out on Thursday by Te Rūnanga o Ngāi Tahu Kaiwhakahaere (chair) Lisa Tumahai said the move, which would more than halve Ngāi Tahu Tourism's 500-strong workforce, was necessary because the company had been so severely affected by Covid-19.

Its 14 businesses had gone into 'hibernation' and were being shut down.

They include high profile attractions such as Shotover Jet in Queenstown, Franz Josef Glacier Guides, the Agrodome and Rainbow Springs in Rotorua, the Dark Sky Project in Tekapo, and the All Black's Experience due to open in Auckland in mid-year.

The $11m Dark Sky Project in Tekapo, which opened last year, was a joint venture between Ngāi Tahu Tourism and co-founders Graeme Murray and Hide Ozawa.

When New Zealand closed its borders to Chinese visitors in February, Ngāi Tahu Tourism chief executive Quinton Hall said it could not have come at a worse time because his businesses had already been affected by weather disruptions and the fires in Australia. The full border closure last month was a further blow.

* Close to $100 million hole in tourism earnings from Chinese travel ban**

*** Tekapo's Dark Sky Project attraction combines Māori astronomy and science

Last month Ngāi Tahu Holdings and Tainui Group Holdings announced they had agreed to sell passenger transport company Go Bus to Melbourne-based industry operator Kinetic.

* Ngāi Tahu more cautious looking ahead as it posts strong profit**

Work and Income records show Ngāi Tahu has received $1.58m in Covid-19 wage subsidies for seven of its tourism businesses and Ngai Tahu Tourism Trust trustees.

Tumahai said the proposal to significantly downsize Ngāi Tahu Tourism, with more than 300 staff at all levels potentially losing their jobs, was a tough call.

'To be proposing to head down this path is devastating for us – and something we certainly did not envisage a few months ago.'

A final decision on the cut backs would be made after consultation and if they went ahead, the remaining workforce would provide the minimum level of support needed while the businesses were closed to all visitors.

Tumahai said Ngāi Tahu had a diverse business portfolio covering tourism, seafood, property, forestry, farming and capital investments, but the effect of coronavirus had been particularly severe for tourism.

'Unfortunately, this means our tourism businesses have no revenue. Even when the industry does eventually reestablish, it is expected to take years to recover.'

Ngāi Tahu would do all it could to support those affected and to buffer the rest of the Ngāi Tahu Group from the economic effects of the pandemic, said Tumahai.

'As for the impact the virus may have across the rest of the Ngāi Tahu Group, we are reviewing this carefully as we head into the next financial year.

'While no other changes of this magnitude are anticipated at this point, myself and my fellow governors have stressed that we must ensure we are focused on core strategic priorities as well as our overarching Covid-19 response and recovery.'

The sharp drop in overseas visitors following the border closure last month has led to speculation about the possibility of some high profile casualties in the tourism sector, particularly those heavily reliant on international markets like China.

Most of Ngāi Tahu's tourism ventures are in the lower South Island and Queenstown mayor Jim Boult said their recent announcement was a 'sad reality' in the current climate.

'There's just no business, they have to cut their cloth to suit their position and you just can't keep paying overheads when you have no revenue coming in the door. What they've done is entirely understandable.'

Tourism export council chief executive Lynda Keene said the news about Ngāi Tahu Tourism was a shock because it ran 'iconic' highly professional businesses, some of which, such as Shotover Jet had been around for decades.

'I hope this hibernation allows their business to come through this situation and regroup over the latter part of the year.'

Rotorua mayor Steve Chadwick said the Ngai Tahu's Agrodome and Rainbow Springs were key attractions for the city and their closure would be 'huge.'

'They've always been what they called back in the day the 'big five,' so they are very, very critical to us, so I hope they work with us on the recovery plan we've got.'