9. DARIEN FENTON (Labour) Link to this
to the Minister of Labour
Do Budget changes to the Department of Labour reflect the Government’s commitment to health and safety?
Hon STEVEN JOYCE (Minister of Transport) Link to this
The Budget included no significant net changes to the funding for health and safety, and the Government remains firmly committed to health and safety.
Can she rule out cuts to the Department of Labour health and safety inspector and front-line positions in the next 12 months; if not, how does she plan to protect New Zealand workers from unsafe work practices and accidents like the two that have tragically claimed lives in the last week?
Yes. There are currently 142 health and safety inspector positions, and there is no plan for those to change. The department is currently undertaking a review of the labour group management and support positions, which may be affected by the outcome of that, but the 142 health and safety front-line inspector positions will not change.
Is she concerned that the number of workers completing health and safety representative training has dropped by two-thirds in the last 2 years, and what effect does she think this will have on workplace safety?
I do not have that information to hand. What I can do is to confirm once again that the budget remains unchanged and the number of inspector positions remains unchanged. If the member would like to put that question in writing to the Minister, I am sure it will be answered.
How will the cuts to the funding for workplace health and safety training, a 40 percent cut in this year’s Budget to the Employment Relations Education Contestable Fund, and the scrapping of $39 million worth of worker health and safety education through the industry training organisations help to prevent more tragic workplace accidents, like the 85 accidents that have occurred in the last 12 months?
I reject two of the subparts of that question, including the suggestion that the health and safety training in industry training organisations is not taking place. I think it is important to point out that in the industry training area it is devoted to obtaining qualifications and skills for workers, and that is an important refocusing that the Government has undertaken.