ISSUE
Friday, October 23, 2026
Volume 17 . Issue 42
A former Christchurch motel owner who required four migrant workers to work up to 98 hours a week while paying them for only 40 hours has been sentenced to seven and a half months’ home detention for migrant exploitation offences.
Jian Li, former owner and operator of Fei Huang Teng Da Ltd, trading as 315 Motel Riccarton, was sentenced in the Christchurch District Court on October 28, 2026, after pleading guilty to seven charges of migrant exploitation under the Immigration Act 2009.
The sentence followed an investigation by Immigration New Zealand (INZ). Li’s counsel sought community detention, but the request was declined given the seriousness of the offending.
The company had earlier been sentenced on May 29, 2026, while Li was out of the country, after pleading guilty to the same seven charges. It was ordered to pay $115,077.26 in reparations.
The offending involved four migrant workers employed as motel managers between February 2017 and December 2021. Three remain in New Zealand on valid work visas, while the fourth has left the country.
The workers were required to live on-site and effectively run the motel, including staffing reception from 7.30am to 9.30pm, seven days a week. Despite working between 84 and 98 hours each week, they were generally paid for only 40 hours.
The investigation found the workers were denied minimum wage and entitlements under the Holidays Act, including annual holidays and time-and-a-half pay for working on public holidays.
INZ Investigations National Manager Jason Perry said the case showed employers who took advantage of workers reliant on them for both employment and their right to remain in New Zealand would face consequences.
"These workers weren't just working the occasional long day. They were essentially running the motel from morning until night, 7 days a week, while being paid for only a fraction of the hours they worked.
"That's simply not acceptable. No one should be expected to work those kinds of hours without being paid properly."
Perry said migrant workers had the same workplace rights as anyone else in New Zealand.
This article has been updated to clarify that Jian Li was the former owner of the business and not the current owner of Motel Riccarton.
A former Christchurch motel owner who required four migrant workers to work up to 98 hours a week while paying them for only 40 hours has been sentenced to seven and a half months’ home detention for migrant exploitation offences.Jian Li, former owner and operator of Fei Huang Teng Da Ltd, trading...
A former Christchurch motel owner who required four migrant workers to work up to 98 hours a week while paying them for only 40 hours has been sentenced to seven and a half months’ home detention for migrant exploitation offences.
Jian Li, former owner and operator of Fei Huang Teng Da Ltd, trading as 315 Motel Riccarton, was sentenced in the Christchurch District Court on October 28, 2026, after pleading guilty to seven charges of migrant exploitation under the Immigration Act 2009.
The sentence followed an investigation by Immigration New Zealand (INZ). Li’s counsel sought community detention, but the request was declined given the seriousness of the offending.
The company had earlier been sentenced on May 29, 2026, while Li was out of the country, after pleading guilty to the same seven charges. It was ordered to pay $115,077.26 in reparations.
The offending involved four migrant workers employed as motel managers between February 2017 and December 2021. Three remain in New Zealand on valid work visas, while the fourth has left the country.
The workers were required to live on-site and effectively run the motel, including staffing reception from 7.30am to 9.30pm, seven days a week. Despite working between 84 and 98 hours each week, they were generally paid for only 40 hours.
The investigation found the workers were denied minimum wage and entitlements under the Holidays Act, including annual holidays and time-and-a-half pay for working on public holidays.
INZ Investigations National Manager Jason Perry said the case showed employers who took advantage of workers reliant on them for both employment and their right to remain in New Zealand would face consequences.
"These workers weren't just working the occasional long day. They were essentially running the motel from morning until night, 7 days a week, while being paid for only a fraction of the hours they worked.
"That's simply not acceptable. No one should be expected to work those kinds of hours without being paid properly."
Perry said migrant workers had the same workplace rights as anyone else in New Zealand.
This article has been updated to clarify that Jian Li was the former owner of the business and not the current owner of Motel Riccarton.
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