Working towards a living wage and more Māori in paid work

The Māori Party will build on the gains it has already achieved in Government and accelerate job opportunities particularly for young Māori.

“Our employment policy is about creating a range of job opportunities and advocating for a living wage so whānau can be self-reliant”, says Te Tai Tonga candidate Ngaire Button.

Over the last six years in Government, the Māori Party has secured 3000 Trade Training placements for Māori and Pasifika people.

“The 21st century Māori and Pasifika Trade Training programmes are a roaring success,” says Mrs Button.

“We’ve seen outstanding results from these partnerships between iwi, training providers and industry. Graduates are getting paid work, apprenticeships or continuing to study. These are exactly the kind of outcomes we need.”

The Māori Party will double the number of Māori and Pasifika Trade Training placements per annum from 3000 to 6000 if re-elected back in to Government.

Ngaire Button says there is clearly a huge demand for skilled tradespeople in the Christchurch as the rebuild gathers steams and in other parts of the country.

To ensure low-income earners are able to have a reasonable standard of living, the Māori Party will lobby for a living wage of $18.80 per hour.

“Workers should be earning enough to pay all their bills and take care of their whānau. The current minimum wage of $14.25 is simply not enough,” says Mrs Button.

The other key Māori Party employment policies are:

• Securing $2.5 million per annum for 250 Māori Affairs cadetships for unemployed Māori. The Māori Party initiated this highly successful cadetship programme targeted at getting unemployed Māori in to the growth industries of energy, infrastructure and telecommunications.

• Creating an annual Ministerial Summit on the Māori economy to advance the Māori Economic Strategy He Kai Kei Aku Ringa. This strategy facilitated by the Māori Party is a blueprint for growing the $37 billion Māori economy.

• Establishing a working party to calculate tax credits for people who make regular contributions to our economy through volunteering, unpaid or community work.

As part of the Government since 2008, the Māori Party:

• secured 3000 Māori and Pasifika Trade Training placements

• invested in sustainable partnerships with iwi, industry and training providers to identify employment opportunities and education pathways

• trialled and secured the funding of the highly successful Māori Affairs cadetships for unemployed Māori

• completed a stock-take of the Māori economy which is estimated to be worth $37 billion and growing

• developed a Māori Economic Strategy to advance Māori business growth and create real jobs

• Supported an increase in the minimum wage to $14.25.

For more details on the Māori Party employment policy go to http://maoriparty.org/our-policies/

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