The Social Development Minister says more jobs are coming to address the number of people on the benefit rising.
Ministry of Social Development statistics show almost eight thousand more people were receiving a main benefit in June compared to March.
As well, close to 81 thousand beneficiaries have moved into work in the last financial year.
Louise Upston told Heather du Plessis Allan the Budget included multiple incentives to create more jobs.
She says apart from the infrastructure pipeline, they're also giving businesses the confidence to take on more staff.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Back to the business of the doll As we said earlier,
there are now more than four hundred thousand kiwis on
some sort of benefit. That's up nearly seven percent on
last year. The number of sanctions are also up though,
which is good, up twenty seven percent. The minister in
charge of fixing this up as Louise Upston with the
Social Development Portfolio. Morning Louise, Good morning Heather.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
How are you.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm very well, thank you. Can you do anything about
these numbers in the short term or do we just
need to ride out this economic storm.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well, it is challenging right now and I feel for
anyone who has lost their job recently. But the government's
budget twenty five going for growth, is all about growth
and infrastructure six point eight billion dollars worth of infrastructure
projects as well as add on private sector projects in
(00:45):
the infrastructure pipeline, and that shows that there will be hundreds,
if not thousands of jobs per projects. Some of those
are yet to start yet, so it is a bit
frustrating right now, but I do want to give people
confidence that those jobs are coming.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Hang on, Luise, I mean the people who are on
the dol though they're not all construction workers.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Are they No, But we have jobs and skills hubs
that are actively working with job seekers now to look
at retraining options to prepare people, make sure they're work
ready and have new skills if they need new skills
to get ready for those jobs.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
But what are we looking at everybody and saying, hey, hey, okay,
here you are. You're a clerical worker, We're just going
to retrain you as a construction work Is everybody going
to become construction workers?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
No? But if you think about when those projects start,
there's a variety of roles that come with projects. Some
of them are administrative projects, some of them are involved
in project administration. But look, a big part of what
we are doing with the going for growth in addition
for the infrastructure pipeline is the settings that give businesses
(01:52):
the confidence to take on more staff. And while we
haven't hit that point in all sectors, we're seeing the
primary thestries recover. I'm working on tourism recovery, so those
jobs will come. But I accept right now where we
are in this part of the economic cycle, it is
incredibly challenging and that is why gross is the government's focus.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Okay, I've got to talk to you about this priority
that's been given to MSD. You've just told them that
they need to focus first and foremost on getting beneficiaries
into jobs. Why wasn't that their focus?
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, we made that focus for a couple of the
programs last year more directly, Mana and Mahi and also
Hapo tamarrang Atahi, setting targets for the number or percentage
of people in those programs already being on the job
seeker benefit. We've done that more broadly with the Employment
Investment Strategy, just to make sure that programs that taxpayers
(02:50):
are funding are for those who are already on the benefit.
And Yep, while it might make sense that that would
already be the case, I've confirmed that with the Investment strategy.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
No, hang on a take, Well, who was on these
programs if it wasn't people who were on the benefit.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Well some of them, and some of them will still
work with people at risk of going on to welfare.
So we do need to also think about the number
who might come on, and we have to target that
more accurately.
Speaker 1 (03:22):
How do you know someone's most likely How do you
identify somebody who's in a job but likely to lose
their job.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
No, someone who's been long term not an employment educational
training is a category, but that's on the benefit. No, no, no, no,
some of that category are not on the benefit yet.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Well what do they do?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
So sixteen or seventeen year olds may be not an
employment educational training but not on welfare either, And so
it's a preventative method. And so, for example, Mayor's Task
Force for Jobs I met with yesterday, they've often worked
with a group not on benefit. I've said to them,
(04:04):
they can work with twenty percent of that cohort, but
the majority need to be already receiving the job seeker benefit.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
Okay, So is this wise, though, Louise, because surely the
whole idea about social investment strategy is actually to target
people like that before they become a problem, when they're
still young.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Yes, So there's different pieces of work. If we look
at school attendance targets, school achievement target that's all about
ensuring we have fewer people coming out of the education
system who can't go into further education or a job.
There are other preventive mechanisms underway.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Let me just be absolutely clear about this. So what
MSD is doing with these programs only involves two groups,
people who are on the benefit and young people who
may well end up on the benefits. Just those two groups,
nobody else, right, No.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
But in addition to that whither we have things like
the Early Response Initiative. So where there's a big business
that is closing, MSD work with that organization and the
employees who are about to be made redundant to support
them immediately before they go on to welfare. So there
will still be programs like that that are right the way,
(05:15):
and they are critically important in these economic times where
there are businesses closing and people being made redundant, but
where there are significant cost programs and some of them
cost eight ten thousand dollars per person, I want to
ensure those are focused on those who are already on
the job seeker benefit and not at people who are
(05:38):
in a position to help themselves. Lies.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
And I just want to ask you something really quickly. Okay,
have you been following this welfare shakeup in the UK?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
I have at a distance here.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Do you think this is a case of easy populist
politics which just comes around every now and again, or
actually is this US as a developed world as part
of the developed world starting to realize generous welfare is unsustainable.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Well, I do think it's a question that many countries
are having to confront. You know, the number of people
who will be working in New Zealand as taxpayers in
the years to come and the number of people being
supported by the welfare system or through the pension. The
balance needs to come back into balance otherwise it will
(06:21):
not be sustainable in the long term.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
Louise, think of your time. Louise Upston, Minister for Social
Development and Employment. For more from the Mic Asking Breakfast,
listen live to news talks that'd be from six am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
Back to the business of the doll As we said earlier,
there are now more than four hundred thousand kiwis on
some sort of benefit. That's up nearly seven percent on
last year. The number of sanctions are also up though,
which is good, up twenty seven percent. The minister in
charge of fixing this up as Louise Upston with the
Social Development Portfolio. Morning Louise, Good morning Heather.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
How are you.
Speaker 1 (00:17):
I'm very well, thank you. Can you do anything about
these numbers in the short term or do we just
need to ride out this economic storm.
Speaker 2 (00:24):
Well, it is challenging right now and I feel for
anyone who has lost their job recently. But the government's
budget twenty five going for growth, is all about growth
and infrastructure six point eight billion dollars worth of infrastructure
projects as well as add on private sector projects in
(00:45):
the infrastructure pipeline, and that shows that there will be hundreds,
if not thousands of jobs per projects. Some of those
are yet to start yet, so it is a bit
frustrating right now, but I do want to give people
confidence that those jobs are coming.
Speaker 1 (01:03):
Hang on, Luise, I mean the people who are on
the dol though they're not all construction workers.
Speaker 2 (01:07):
Are they No, But we have jobs and skills hubs
that are actively working with job seekers now to look
at retraining options to prepare people, make sure they're work
ready and have new skills if they need new skills
to get ready for those jobs.
Speaker 1 (01:22):
But what are we looking at everybody and saying, hey, hey, okay,
here you are. You're a clerical worker, We're just going
to retrain you as a construction work Is everybody going
to become construction workers?
Speaker 2 (01:32):
No? But if you think about when those projects start,
there's a variety of roles that come with projects. Some
of them are administrative projects, some of them are involved
in project administration. But look, a big part of what
we are doing with the going for growth in addition
for the infrastructure pipeline is the settings that give businesses
(01:52):
the confidence to take on more staff. And while we
haven't hit that point in all sectors, we're seeing the
primary thestries recover. I'm working on tourism recovery, so those
jobs will come. But I accept right now where we
are in this part of the economic cycle, it is
incredibly challenging and that is why gross is the government's focus.
Speaker 1 (02:15):
Okay, I've got to talk to you about this priority
that's been given to MSD. You've just told them that
they need to focus first and foremost on getting beneficiaries
into jobs. Why wasn't that their focus?
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, we made that focus for a couple of the
programs last year more directly, Mana and Mahi and also
Hapo tamarrang Atahi, setting targets for the number or percentage
of people in those programs already being on the job
seeker benefit. We've done that more broadly with the Employment
Investment Strategy, just to make sure that programs that taxpayers
(02:50):
are funding are for those who are already on the benefit.
And Yep, while it might make sense that that would
already be the case, I've confirmed that with the Investment strategy.
Speaker 1 (03:02):
No, hang on a take, Well, who was on these
programs if it wasn't people who were on the benefit.
Speaker 2 (03:07):
Well some of them, and some of them will still
work with people at risk of going on to welfare.
So we do need to also think about the number
who might come on, and we have to target that
more accurately.
Speaker 1 (03:22):
How do you know someone's most likely How do you
identify somebody who's in a job but likely to lose
their job.
Speaker 2 (03:28):
No, someone who's been long term not an employment educational
training is a category, but that's on the benefit. No, no, no, no,
some of that category are not on the benefit yet.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Well what do they do?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
So sixteen or seventeen year olds may be not an
employment educational training but not on welfare either, And so
it's a preventative method. And so, for example, Mayor's Task
Force for Jobs I met with yesterday, they've often worked
with a group not on benefit. I've said to them,
(04:04):
they can work with twenty percent of that cohort, but
the majority need to be already receiving the job seeker benefit.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
Okay, So is this wise, though, Louise, because surely the
whole idea about social investment strategy is actually to target
people like that before they become a problem, when they're
still young.
Speaker 2 (04:24):
Yes, So there's different pieces of work. If we look
at school attendance targets, school achievement target that's all about
ensuring we have fewer people coming out of the education
system who can't go into further education or a job.
There are other preventive mechanisms underway.
Speaker 1 (04:41):
Let me just be absolutely clear about this. So what
MSD is doing with these programs only involves two groups,
people who are on the benefit and young people who
may well end up on the benefits. Just those two groups,
nobody else, right, No.
Speaker 2 (04:53):
But in addition to that whither we have things like
the Early Response Initiative. So where there's a big business
that is closing, MSD work with that organization and the
employees who are about to be made redundant to support
them immediately before they go on to welfare. So there
will still be programs like that that are right the way,
(05:15):
and they are critically important in these economic times where
there are businesses closing and people being made redundant, but
where there are significant cost programs and some of them
cost eight ten thousand dollars per person, I want to
ensure those are focused on those who are already on
the job seeker benefit and not at people who are
(05:38):
in a position to help themselves. Lies.
Speaker 1 (05:40):
And I just want to ask you something really quickly. Okay,
have you been following this welfare shakeup in the UK?
Speaker 2 (05:46):
I have at a distance here.
Speaker 1 (05:47):
Do you think this is a case of easy populist
politics which just comes around every now and again, or
actually is this US as a developed world as part
of the developed world starting to realize generous welfare is unsustainable.
Speaker 2 (06:00):
Well, I do think it's a question that many countries
are having to confront. You know, the number of people
who will be working in New Zealand as taxpayers in
the years to come and the number of people being
supported by the welfare system or through the pension. The
balance needs to come back into balance otherwise it will
(06:21):
not be sustainable in the long term.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
Louise, think of your time. Louise Upston, Minister for Social
Development and Employment. For more from the Mic Asking Breakfast,
listen live to news talks that'd be from six am weekdays,
or follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.
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