Hanga-Aro-Rau chief executive Phil Alexander-Crawford said Pacific peoples are essential to plugging workforce holes. Photo: Facebook / baykiwifruitcontracting
A new action plan to upskill and create clearer pathways for Aotearoa's Pacific workforce to enter the manufacturing, engineering and logistics (MEL) industries has been presented in Parliament.
The Lumana'i o Tagata Moana Pacific Peoples Workforce Development Action Plan by Hanga-Aro-Rau is a partnership with Pacific communities, industries, businesses and providers.
The initiative aims to address a growing shortage of skilled workers in New Zealand's MEL industries as well as address the income disparity between the Pacific workforce compared to the general population.
Pacific workers needed to fill NZ's labour gaps
Hanga-Aro-Rau chief executive Phil Alexander-Crawford said Pacific peoples are essential to plugging workforce holes.
"It is not just about attracting more Pacific people into our workforce; it is making sure that we are supporting those people and their whanau into higher paying jobs and giving them career pathways," he said.
"At the moment, there is a disparity around both the roles, the income and the skills that our existing Pacific workforce have compared to the general population.
"If we can focus in on raising the level of skills and qualifications that Pacific workforce have, it is not only going to raise the income for those people in their finance but it will also raise productivity and will fill those help fill those critical skill gaps."
However, Pacific workers reportedly face racism, discrimination, pay inequity and little career progression.
Alexander-Crawford said New Zealand's industry partners are committed to changing its work culture.
"It is about making sure that those organisations that are modelling what is needed to work with their Pacific communities for better outcomes; that we model those to other employers and industry and bring them to the table for them to see what's needed to get those better outcomes."
He said people are understanding that this is an opportunity.
"But with any opportunity you do need to face the barriers to attract Pacific people into our industries, and there is definitely motivation there from enough employers [in the] industry to do this."
He said there were many employers who wanted to know what they could do to support their Pacific workforce better and how to attract more Pacific people into their industries.
"For us, it is not just about attracting more Pacific people into our workforces.
"It is making sure that we are supporting those people in whanau into higher paying jobs and giving them those career pathways - that's essential.
"Statistically, we know that there have been real challenges for Pacific people to advance through some of our industries, and we know the potential that sits there now."
Alexander-Crawford added the Workforce Development Council was committed to piloting a range of approaches over the next 12 months in partnership with other organisations under this plan.