Guaranteeing worker education and training

Every worker deserves access to training, fair pay, and real opportunities. A fairer future means helping people learn the skills they need to thrive in a changing world.

Develop our future workforce

We do not have good visibility or analysis of New Zealand’s current and future workforce needs. This undermines our social and economic development, and our ability to deliver a just transition for working people in industries undergoing change. We propose establishing an enduring architecture for workforce development and employment action plans.

Ensure training and development for all workers

Access to ongoing training is patchy across different industries. In addition, for many workers geography or work routines create significant barriers to accessing the training they require to develop their careers. As a first step towards improving training accessibility and ensuring all workers have work-relevant skills, we propose the establishment of a lifelong digital learning entitlement. This entitlement would provide workers with free access to digital technology training to enhance their skills.

Support paid in-work training

Increasingly, some workforces are expected to learn on the job without adequate remuneration. This causes financial stress for working households and recruitment problems in some sectors. We propose amending the Minimum Wage Act to ensure that all apprentices, interns and those training on the job are paid at least the minimum wage.

Reform the student support system

The current student support system is leaving students in poverty, reducing access to skills and development, and creating burdensome debts that workers spend years paying off. Its coverage also leaves out postgraduate students and others from being eligible for financial support. The system should be reformed to ensure students aren’t forced to live in poverty.

Implement the Māori Employment Action Plan

Māori unemployment stands at nearly double the Pākehā rate, and Māori are paid less than other groups. Action is needed to tackle both the discrimination that kaimahi Māori encounter at work, and the lack of opportunities holding some back. The Government should commit to delivering the recommendations of the Māori Employment Action Plan, and to properly resourcing Māori employment activities in collaboration with kaimahi Māori.

Ensure the educational needs of tamariki Māori are met

The Waitangi Tribunal has recently found that the policy and regulatory framework for Kura Kaupapa Māori is not fit for purpose and breaches Te Tiriti. They recommended the establishment of an independent Kaupapa Māori education authority. The Government should commit to developing an independent authority with a structure and scope agreed to by Te Rūnanga Nui o Ngā Kura Kaupapa Māori.