Public servants at many government agencies face sweeping proposals of redundancies and jobs disestablished Photo: Unsplash
The latest job cuts at the Ministry of Business Innovation and Employment and other government agencies are misguided, the leader of New Zealand's largest trade union says.
Public service bosses have been asked to find proposals to cut between 6.5 and 7.5 percent of savings, to help the government prune back annual sector spending by $1.5 billion.
The ministry (MBIE) is proposing to reduce its Information and Education team by 30 roles - a quarter of the team, as part of cost-cutting measures.
The team handles 1.8 million queries a week, from businesses and the public.
But the Public Service Association (PSA) union's national secretary Duane Leo said the team was crucial and users would soon notice a decline in services.
"The team oversees and provides content for websites, it's an education and information team primarily.
"They also look after social media, publications, newsletters and events, and basically provide all that information and support to the wider MBIE staffing."
Leo said the latest cuts were yet another blow to community and public services.
"The key thing here is that what we fund is what we value, and this is an example of the government's choice to cut community and public services to fund the $15 billion worth of tax cuts, rather than invest in the community and public services we need."
The PSA would keep opposing the job cuts and advocating for community and public services that will build a better future for Aotearoa, he said.
MBIE staff were briefed about the proposed job cuts on Thursday, the same day the Ministry of Health announced a proposal to cut 134 roles and the Ministry of Social Development called for voluntary redundancies across a number of teams.
Leo said the proposed job cuts were just the beginning for MBIE, which has about 6650 staff.
Last month 111 staff took voluntary redundancy.