Foreign worker employment in Fiji has increased by 79 percent between 2022 and 2025, highlighting growing pressure on businesses to fill critical skills shortages.
This has been revealed in the National Skills Gap Assessment Survey, which shows local worker employment grew by 10 percent over the same period, while recruitment of foreign workers rose sharply as employers increasingly turned overseas to meet labour demands.
The report says the strong rise in foreign worker employment reflects employers’ growing reliance on foreign labour due to specialised skill requirements, labour shortages in key industries and difficulties in sourcing suitably qualified local workers.
Despite the sharp increase, local workers still make up the overwhelming majority of Fiji’s workforce at 97.8 percent, while foreign workers account for 2.2 percent.
The survey also found that Fiji’s workforce has grown by 11 percent in three years, rising from 91,338 workers in 2022 to 101,729 workers in 2025.
However, businesses say finding skilled workers remains a major challenge.
Prime Minister Sitiveni Rabuka says one of the key pressures on Fiji’s labour force is outward migration, revealing that about 15,500 Fijians migrated overseas for better employment opportunities between January 2023 and February 2024, placing added pressure on the sustainability of Fiji’s workforce.
The report identifies overseas migration as the biggest reason Fiji is losing skilled workers, followed by internal migration within Fiji, movement through employment schemes such as NEC and the Pacific Australia Labour Mobility Scheme, and workers seeking better opportunities elsewhere.
Businesses surveyed say the biggest shortages are in chefs, IT technicians, accountants, electricians and machine operators.
Other critical shortages include admin officers, carpenters, engineers, senior management officials and heavy goods drivers.
The report also highlights a shift towards more permanent jobs, with salary-based employment increasing by 16 percent, compared with 8 percent growth in wage-based employment, while full-time employment rose by 15 percent and part-time work declined by 22 percent.
A total of 374 businesses took part in the survey, giving a 91.2 percent response rate.
The National Skills Gap Assessment Survey says businesses are now focusing on upskilling and retraining current workers, re-engaging retired workers and hiring more local workers, while also using foreign recruitment to fill urgent workforce gaps.
Meanwhile, FCEF CEO Edward Bernard says effective labour market policies and programmes urgently need to address supply-side challenges identified in the report.
Bernard says there are high skills gaps across all categories and industries, with employers struggling to fill 95 different positions identified in the survey.
He says the minimum qualifications required for these positions range from high school education to TVET qualifications.
Benard also highlights the increasing need for efficient and safe recruitment of foreign workers to ensure businesses, offices and machines continue operating amid labour shortages.
He says Bangladesh and India are the highest sources of foreign workers entering Fiji, while Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and Tonga are among regional countries supplying workers.
Benard says Fiji needs bilateral agreements with countries sending workers, similar to Fiji’s overseas labour arrangements with Australia and New Zealand.
He also called for improved efficiency in work permit processing, saying the survey now provides verified government data on skills shortages to assist immigration authorities.
Benard further suggested allowing foreign workers spouses and regional students to work in Fiji to help buffer labour shortages, similar to arrangements available for Fijians studying and working overseas.
Speaking at the launch of the National Skills Gap Assessment Survey, FCEF Immediate Past President Vinay Narsey says these labour shortages are driving up recruitment and training costs, lowering productivity, reducing competitiveness and increasing the cost of doing business, which is eating into profits and discouraging investment.
He says it is frustrating to see skilled workers leave Fiji through labour mobility and migration schemes while millions of dollars continue to be invested in higher education and training without any real improvement in local labour supply.
Narsey also highlights that many businesses are being forced to go through lengthy processes to bring in foreign workers just to keep factories and offices operating.
He is calling for urgent policy changes in education, employment and immigration, saying Fiji must prioritise producing workers with the qualifications, skills and attitudes demanded by employers if the country is serious about achieving stronger economic growth.
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