Workplace Productivity: the Next Big Challenge
Hon Paul Swain
30 November 2004
Improving workplace productivity so that profits and wages continue to grow is a major challenge facing New Zealand's economy, Labour Minister Paul Swain says.
Paul Swain said the Workplace Productivity Working Group Report, released today, highlights how much New Zealand needs to do to boost productivity given our performance is low relative to many other OECD countries.
"For the first time there is now a consensus across government, business and unions for us all to take responsibility for this issue. The report is an important step to achieving this.
"Increasing workplace productivity is vital if we are to continue making progress on our goal of returning to the top half of the OECD. Economic growth has been strong for the last five years but for this to continue without exceeding our inflation targets, we need to work smarter.
"With unemployment at a 20-year low of 3.8 percent and skills and labour shortages emerging, the option of employing more people to increase output is not the realistic solution it once was."
Paul Swain said the report identified seven key drivers for lifting workplace productivity. These are:
- building leadership and management capability
- creating productive workplaces
- encouraging innovation and technology
- investing in people and skills
- organising work more effectively
- sharing ideas
- measuring what works.
These will each be delivered by:
- raising awareness of the importance of workplace productivity
- providing tools for firms to identify how they are performing and what they can do to improve performance
- implementing strategies to lift productivity
- identifying what works and where the gaps are through research and evaluation.
"The government, NZ Council of Trade Unions and Business New Zealand have agreed to take responsibility for this issue. The next step will be to develop a work programme that all groups need to participate in," Paul Swain said.
Paul Swain said he would report to Cabinet colleagues on progress every six months, starting next July. These reports will be made public.