Decent Work New Zealand
Towards Decent Work - Charting our progress
Objective 1: Activities, Strategies and/or Institutional Arrangements Developed to Address each Critical Success Factor
CSF 15: Workplaces are safe and healthy.
Activity:
Ensuring the maintenance of reasonable income for earners following injury in or out of the workplace
Description:
The Injury Prevention Compensation and Rehabilitation Act 2001 ensures that all New Zealand workers with injuries acceptable for cover under the legislation continue to receive at least 80% of their pre-injury earnings during rehabilitation or recovery
Lead Agency:
Accident Compensation Corporation
Activity:
Financial incentives by levy adjustments for employers to encourage safer working environments
Description:
Four current Accident Compensation Corporation Workplace Incentive Programmes provide for downward or upward adjustments in workplace levies. Downward adjustments are available under three programmes; a “risk sharing” option that is generally most suitable for larger businesses, a three level downward levy adjustment that is most suited to medium to large employers and a programme specifically focused on small businesses in six key industry sectors. Another programme targets poor performing employers.
Lead Agency:
Accident Compensation Corporation
Activity:
Workplace Safety Programmes
Description:
The Accident Compensation Corporation has developed injury prevention programmes for identified key high-risk industry sectors. This is in collaboration with supportive industry associations and employee representatives for the joint implementation of initiatives to reduce the incidence of work-related injuries of serious consequence.
Lead Agency:
Accident Compensation Corporation
Activity:
Public Safety Programmes
Description:
The Accident Compensation Corporation has developed and implemented, and continues to develop and implement, a range of programmes aimed at high-risk areas of non-work activities. These include falls, sport, home, school, road, cultural and recreational activities where either the number and/or severity of injuries occurring requires preventive action.
Lead Agency:
Accident Compensation Corporation
Activity:
Tripartite initiatives to create and maintain workplace safety initiatives
Description:
The Accident Compensation Corporation’s workplace incentive programmes promote and facilitate tripartite involvement in creating and maintaining safer working environments in individual workplaces. The Accident Compensation Corporation also activity promotes and supports the building of workplace health and safety capability through initiatives such as the provision of assistance to the NZ Council of Trade Unions and Business NZ for the development and delivery of employee health and safety representative courses.
Lead Agency:
Accident Compensation Corporation
Activity:
Ageing Workforce Programme
Description:
Work Directions is developing a new work stream focusing on the ageing population and older workers issues. This work stream has two objectives, firstly to influence thinking and enhance the quality of debate and policy development. The second objective is to focus and consolidate Work Directions, departmental and potentially cross-Government research and analysis activities on older workers.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Support for small businesses
Description:
The Department of Labour provides information and assistance to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and the SME sector on workplace issues and opportunities. The Small Business Information Unit provides SME-targeted workplace practice information with and through Business NZ networks, such as Productivity Tool Kit workshops with Chambers of Commerce.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Workplace Productivity Agenda
Description:
The Workplace Productivity Agenda lifts productivity through awareness raising, providing workshops through Chambers of Commerce and developing diagnostic tools for businesses. Evaluation will include responses to the diagnostic tool, feedback from Chambers of Commerce and identifying gaps in awareness-raising.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Employment Relations Education Ministerial Advisory Committee
Description:
The Committee assesses applications for funding from the Employment Relations Education Contestable Fund; makes recommendations to the Minister of Labour around funding allocations; sets a strategic direction for the Contestable Fund; exercises the power delegated by the Minister of Labour to approve courses of employment relations education and courses of training for Health and Safety representatives. The Department of Labour provides secretariat support for this Committee.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Workplace Health and Safety Strategy for New Zealand to 2015
Description:
The Workplace Health and Safety Strategy is a framework for action that sets out a vision, a set of principles, outcomes and an implementation plan for achieving healthy people in safe and productive workplaces. It also aims to reduce the work death toll in New Zealand.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Better Work Working Better (BWWB)
Description:
BWWB sets out the Government’s aspirations for high quality employment in productive and innovative industries, regions and businesses that drives sustainable economic growth and opportunities for all New Zealanders. Goals under BWWB are high levels of participation in high-quality, well-paid and diversified employment; a diverse, adaptable and highly-skilled workforce; high-quality and productive workplaces within an effective regulatory environment and high-performing sector and regional labour markets.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Metal manufacturing project in Rotorua
Description:
The metal manufacturing project started as a Department of Labour initiative and developed into a joint exercise with ACC, to ensure compliance and reduction in the number of ACC claims in the metal manufacturing sector.
Lead Agency:
Department of Labour
Activity:
Inspections on board vessels to protect working conditions
Description:
Inspection for compliance in accordance with relevant recognised ILO/International Maritime Organisation standards and parallel New Zealand standards.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Industry-based solutions to health and maritime safety issues
Description:
Groups made up of employer/employer/researcher interests are convened for different sectors and act as a focus for health and safety awareness and develop industry-based solutions to key risks. Maritime NZ provides support services to these groups.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Development of activity-specific codes of safe working practice on board ships, and associated injury prevention training
Description:
Maritime NZ, in partnership with Accident Compensation Corporation, the Seafood Industry Training Organisation and the commercial fishing industry, has developed guidelines for health and safety on board small commercial fishing vessels and associated specific health and safety training which is recognised by the NZQA. The guidelines are now being used as the basis for the development of guidelines for the domestic passenger and non-passenger fleet, and similar guidelines have been developed for the international fleet.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Fishing Industry Safety and Health Advisory Group (FishSAFE)
Description:
FishSAFE is an industry-led partnership between Maritime NZ, ACC and the commercial fishing industry. It acts as a "clearing house" for a wide variety of issues relating to health and safety in the commercial fishing industry.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Development of an industry-led website for fishing industry safety and health matters
Description:
The FishSAFE website has been established to communicate the work of FishSAFE and ensure that resource material is available to the wider industry.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Development of a range of targeted educational and support material for maritime health and safety
Description:
Guidance material is developed based on identified needs and target audiences. This will form part of a wider "safety communications strategy" currently being developed.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Initiatives to reduce short and long term injuries in the stevedore work force when working aboard ships.
Description:
A stevedore industry based steering committee has been established to work in partnership with Maritime NZ, Department of Labour, and related agencies. The prime objective of the activity is to achieve a reduction in stevedore injuries. Stevedore injury statistics are currently being analysed. Outcomes are expected to include guidelines for the safe handling of ships’ cargoes, an efficient “alert” system of communication between NZ ports, and a benchmark pre-discharge/loading safety survey report.
Lead Agency:
Maritime New Zealand
Activity:
Small Business Advisory Group
Description:
This group provides ongoing advice to the Ministerial Group on Small Business on any issues affecting small and medium-sized enterprises. It identifies issues, suggests priorities, explores solutions, provides assistance and advice to government departments on dealing with SMEs and provides suggestions on ways for enhancing SME and government agency performance.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Economic Development
Activity:
National training initiative to boost the numbers of home-based disability support (HBSS) workers who have foundation level training
Description:
This initiative aims to support the implementation of training and assessment for HBSS support workers to complete the National Certificate in Community Support Services, Level One.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Health
Activity:
Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) Workforce Development Project
Description:
This initiative aims to implement a training and supervision programme for support workers and professionals (including families) who support children and young people with ASD in Child Youth and Family care.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Health
Activity:
Environmental Support Services (ESS) for people with disabilities
Description:
ESS are available through Disability Services Directorate-funded ESS providers for provision of equipment and funding for vehicles/vehicle modifications and driving assessments. This support is available to disabled people assessed as eligible and having an essential need to enable them to undertake fulltime employment or vocational training.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Health
Activity:
Development of training and qualifications in needs assessment and service co-ordination (NASC) for disabled people
Description:
The Ministry of Health’s Disability Services Directorate works with relevant training organisations to identify NASC-specific competencies that will develop into under-graduate and post-graduate national learning programmes.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Health
Activity:
Development of training and qualifications in community-based residential services for disabled people
Description:
The Ministry of Health’s Disability Services Directorate works with providers and relevant training organisations to identify support worker-specific competencies that will develop into under graduate and post-graduate national learning programmes.
Lead Agency:
Ministry of Health
Activity:
Increase union density and the extent of collective bargaining in the aged care and disability sectors in order to improve wages
Description:
The NZCTU works with the Service and Food Workers Union (SFWU) and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) to improve wages and employment conditions in the aged care sector through collective agreements. The unions are jointly co-ordinating the Fair Share for Aged Care campaign. The NZCTU also works with the Public Service Association (PSA) and the SFWU in their campaign to improve wages and conditions for disability sector care workers through a focus on increasing coverage of collective agreements.
Lead Agency:
New Zealand Council of Trade Unions
Activity:
Health and safety education and training
Description:
The NZCTU raises awareness amongst unions and their members about workers’ rights to participate in injury prevention management. The NZCTU provides three levels of health and safety representative training, with over 20,000 representatives now trained. Additional targeted training is undertaken with companies involved in the ACC Partnership Programme.
Lead Agency:
New Zealand Council of Trade Unions
Activity:
Union guidance/worker perspective on health and safety issues
Description:
The NZCTU provides guidance and a worker perspective on health and safety issues through such activities as submitting to ACC on shift-work fatigue as a hazard; contributing to occupational safety and health guidelines; and participating in a number of heath and safety for a and advisory groups including The Health and Safety Council and the ACC Ministerial Advisory Group.
Lead Agency:
New Zealand Council of Trade Unions
Activity:
Advocacy service for injured workers
Description:
The NZCTU offers a national phone-based advocacy service that provides union members with advice on ACC entitlements and injury management.
Lead Agency:
New Zealand Council of Trade Unions
Activity:
Foundation learning programmes for adults
Description:
In November 2007 Cabinet agreed to initiate an “upskilling the workforce” strategy [external link] that builds on the adult literacy strategy, focussed on literacy, language and numeracy skills for New Zealand workplaces. This strategy aims to build the amount of literacy, language and numeracy provisions being undertaken, and enhance the capability of both tertiary education organisations and industry to build the skills of the workforce.
Lead Agency:
Tertiary Education Commission
Activity:
Industry Training for people in employment
Description:
Industry training [external link] facilitates structured training arrangements for employees, both on-job and off-job, linked to recognised qualifications on the National Qualifications Framework.
Lead Agency:
Tertiary Education Commission
Activity:
Skill New Zealand Tripartite Forum
Description:
An agreement between the Government, Business NZ and the NZCTU, aiming to create greater awareness of industry training and workplace learning and the skills needs of industry. In 2007, the government and tripartite partners agreed to develop a unified Skills Strategy for New Zealand. The aim of the Skills Strategy is to build a clear consensus on the skill needs of New Zealand moving forward and what the contributions of the various partners are to ensure the skills needs are met.
Lead Agency:
Tertiary Education Commission