There were various socioeconomic factors that motivated the migrants to travel to other Pacific Island countries for employment. These push factors have been tabled with the most important preceding the others.
|
Reasons |
Kiribati (%) (No.) |
Marshall Islands (%) (No.) |
Total (%) (No.) |
|
Inadequate pay/salary in Fiji |
17 |
55 |
72 |
|
Work conditions in Fiji not good |
0 |
21 |
21 |
|
A desire for a new living and working environment |
17 |
2 |
19 |
|
Travel and adventure |
17 |
0 |
17 |
|
Political instability |
17 |
0 |
17 |
|
Other reasons |
50 |
26 |
76 |
|
Total |
118 (7) |
104 (45) |
222(52) |
Note: This is a multiple response question and percentage totals might be more than 100.
Source: Fieldwork data from Kiribati and Marshall Islands, June–August 2002.
The most important motivation for the Fijian migrants was that pay offered locally was inadequate compared with what they were being offered in their host countries. For instance, a Fijian graduate secondary schoolteacher working regular hours between 8.30am and 4.30pm was being paid $F13,000. The same teacher could earn $A20,000 ($F34,000) at a secondary school in the Marshall Islands.
Other reasons for leaving Fiji were to accompany a spouse or relatives, that there was more need for their skill in the host country, that it was a divine calling to serve, to move out of the country because of retirement, to facilitate immigration to metropolitan countries, to avoid the racial discrimination experienced in Fiji, because chances for promotion in Fiji were slim, as well as the opportunity to be near parents. These results reflect the work of Leweniqila and others (2000: 7), who noted that ‘the nightingales’ were leaving Fiji for other countries, including other Pacific Island countries, to work, due to poor work conditions, a very low salary scale and poor management of those in the nursing profession.
On the other hand, except for one response noting racial discrimination as a push factor in this study, the results generally depart from the conclusions reached by Mohanty (2001: 58). He argues that the key push factors for Indo-Fijian migration are social and economic insecurities arising from land tenure problems; fear of political uncertainty and insecurity; discrimination; rural terrorism and problems of law and order; and the continuing political and constitutional crises. The racial profiles of the two studies explain much of this difference in motivating factors for labour migration. Indo-Fijians leave Fiji for different reasons than Fijians.