The Department of Labour says, although there is no shortage of workers in Queenstown at present, it has launched a pilot scheme which, in its first two weeks, attracted over 1000 overseas workers wanting to work in the resort.

Immigration New Zealand is inviting Queenstown tourism and hospitality employers to participate in the free Queenstown hospitality and tourism working holiday pilot scheme.

Department of Labour immigration senior account manager Jenny Alexander said its policy team asked her to use "magnet" technology to find workers matching tourism and hospitality shortages in Queenstown earlier this year.

Magnet technology is a strategy used to target people with very specific skills, mainly in health, education, and information technology, and attract them to New Zealand.

It uses internet advertising to find potential migrants, and points them to a website where they are invited to register.

The website provides them with information about moving to New Zealand, and connects them with employers at no charge to either party.

To date, the best results had been through Facebook advertisements, , she said.

The Queenstown site was launched on May 7 and received 1000 registrations in the first two weeks.

Ms Alexander said 75% of those interested in working in Queenstown came from the United Kingdom, United States, Canada or Germany.

Working holidaymakers from these countries can work here for up to 12 months, she said.

She said 96 had listed a hospitality occupation, including head chef, bartender, barista and restaurant manager.

Forty-one worked in the snow sports industry and 210 were students, who were likely to have hospitality experience.

"Staffing a seasonal business is difficult. Even in a tight economic climate it can be hard to find the people you want, with the skills you require, who can work when you need them to.

"And for many employers, it can seem too hard to recruit workers from overseas. Until now."

The figures were presented to tourism and hospitality industry leadership groups on May 20, and the groups were "very excited", Ms Alexander said.

However, she said most jobs in Queenstown had already been filled.

"Earlier this year, there were a lot of shortages. There aren't any shortages now. But this is a way to help employers with future proofing and planning."

The Queenstown job market had seasonal peaks and troughs.

There were not enough New Zealanders to fill jobs at certain times of the year, Ms Alexander said.

The pilot scheme was a way of measuring interest from working holidaymakers.

It would be presented to employers as a tool to fill potential shortages, she said.

Many people already skilled in hospitality and tourism were keen to come to New Zealand for a working holiday, Ms Alexander said.

The Department of Labour was holding a meeting at the Mercure Queenstown Resort on June 18 to update employers on the pilot.

Ms Alexander said the department wanted to know what skills employers were seeking, so it could match up potential employees.

The department would advertise staff vacancies free, and offer access to a database of working holidaymakers, Ms Alexander said.