Refining the LONO Process

The screen sector of New Zealand has proved to be very resilient in the face of the Covid-19 disruptions as we have crossed into a new year living with the ongoing effects of the pandemic. From our local dramas and productions through to the large-scale offshore productions that have battled their way through the shooting disruptions of the past year.

The one thing the New Zealand screen industry is suffering from is our classic New Zealand problem of a lack of studio space and infrastructure but most visibly a lack of crew across a range of departments and disciplines.

This has led there to be an increased interest and scrutiny about the LONO (Letter of non-objection) process conducted by the guild. We have had numerous inquiries over the past year by members and non-members alike with concerns that offshore screen industry workers have been granted LONOs and access to work in NZ at the detriment of New Zealand workers who are available to do the work.

We understand this concern from our members and agree that local screen workers should absolutely be in the mix and considered for applicable roles before offshore crew are granted visas. One aspect we need to remember is Australians have a right to work in NZ without a visa due to CER as we do over there. But there have been concerns raised about Australians over the last year being let into the country through MIQ as essential workers when there were those who felt there were New Zealand crew able to fill the position.

The guild has consistently strived to provide a system for processing LONOs that meets a criteria of being:

• Fast
• They need to be able to be processed within an acceptable timeframe.
• Fair
• There needs to be a balance between the rights of NZ crew, and the needs of the production and wider industry.
• Transparent
• The decisions need to be able to be justified and stand up to scrutiny.

The current process has involved the guild executive officer getting a list from the production of the New Zealand screen workers who had been considered for the role. Then a decision was made by conferring with guild officers and reaching out to specific department contacts and groups to decide if there was a lack of availability for the role. This process has been reviewed by a guild sub-committee, and the decision has been made to trial a new LONO processing system, which is hoped gives members an ability to be part of the review process.

This system will follow a process where, when a LONO application is received, the executive officer will continue to get the applicant to list the NZ crew considered. Then the EO will email a group of those members, who have listed that specific role the LONO candidate is filling, on their guild profile on the SIGANZ website. The EO will then get guidance from these members as to the availability of NZ crew for that role both within and outside our current membership.

Confidentiality of the applications needs to be consistent throughout the process; consequently, those consulted will not know the production company or the individual they are proposing to bring from offshore. It’s all about establishing whether there is local availability for a role or not. There also may be circumstances where a LONO may be granted despite the availability of local crew if there is a significant reason that justifies this, and this will be communicated and discussed with those concerned.

Log onto your profile and update the roles you consider you’re qualified to fill on a production. While you're there, you can look at the directory of members, and review those in your department and see the roles they have listed alongside their profile. Remember to tell members if they want to be part of the consultation process to update their profile. And to non-members encourage them to join so they can participate in this process.

If anyone has any questions regarding this, please feel free to contact Kelly or myself. We’ll be happy to answer any queries. Also, if you feel you or anyone else is qualified and available for work which is being filled by offshore workers, please flag it with the EO so we can look into it and factor it into the future LONO application process.

This new system relies on members updating the roles in their profile to participate, but this is also still a work in progress and may need to be tweaked over time to streamline the functionality.

I want to thank the sub-committee members, who gave their time to review the process and define another way: Nick Treacy, Amanda Jenkins, Sioux McDonald, Annie Weston, Christian Gower, and Richard Bluck.

Here’s to a busy and productive 2021—it looks at this stage that it may be a vast improvement on last year.

Brendon Durey