Government supports 10,000 Māori into mahi, with 900 more expected

Over 10,000 Māori jobseekers have been supported into employment, education and training across Mana in Mahi, He Poutama Rangatahi, Apprenticeship Boost, Māori Trades and Training, and Flexi-wage.
967 more rangatahi will be supported into mahi through $14.2 million funding for 11 community providers
3,133 rangatahi have been supported into employment, education and training through He Poutama Rangatahi since 2018
Over 10,000 Māori jobseekers have been supported into mahi across the Government’s employment programmes, with 967 more rangatahi expected to be supported into employment, education or training with the latest tranche of He Poutama Rangatahi funding, Minister for Social Development and Employment Carmel Sepuloni announced today.
“We’ve worked hard to secure our recovery from COVID-19, unemployment has fallen to 3.2 percent and our labour market has held up better than expected. This is a reflection of the suite of Government measures and interventions we’ve put in place to protect jobs and livelihoods in the midst of a pandemic,” Carmel Sepuloni said.
“10,000 Māori into mahi is an incredible milestone but we mustn’t take our foot off the pedal, which is why this morning we also launched Te Mahere Whai Mahi Māori – The Māori Employment Action Plan, to accelerate the recovery.
“We’re continuing to support that recovery by delivering more opportunities for people to get into meaningful mahi with 11 community providers receiving funding to support over 900 rangatahi to participate in He Poutama Rangatahi.
“A basic principle of He Poutama Rangatahi was that local communities were best placed to understand barriers rangatahi faced to employment, and the latest funding would support providers in Auckland, Wellington, the Bay of Plenty, Tairawhiti, Te Tai Tokerau and Hawke’s Bay.
“We know that Māori rangatahi are a focus of the programme because many are at risk of long-term unemployment due to barriers they face accessing, and succeeding, in education and training.
“He Poutama Rangatahi continues to provide participants with life skills, work readiness training, and ongoing, intensive, individualised pastoral care. We know it’s a programme that works because it’s helped 3133 rangatahi who had engaged with the programme since 2018 move into employment, education or training.
“He Poutama Rangatahi, along with our Government’s suite of employment programmes, remain a key part of our plan to manage labour market impacts on young people, and as we build back better from COVID-19,” Carmel Sepuloni said.