12. JUDITH COLLINS (National—Clevedon) Link to this
to the Minister for Social Development and Employment
Does she still stand by her statement, in relation to the largest quarterly decline in employment in 19 years, “Ah well, I don’t think that this is bad news at all actually”; if so, why?
Hon RUTH DYSON (Minister for Social Development and Employment) Link to this
Yes, I do stand by my statement, because it would be very hard to describe an economy that has 350,000 more jobs, an unemployment rate of under 4 percent for 15 straight quarters, the third-lowest unemployment rate ever recorded in household labour force survey history, and 140,000 fewer people on benefits, as being bad news.
Has the Minister told the 138 meatworkers in Dunedin who lost their jobs yesterday that “this is [not] bad news at all actually”, “there’s a bit of an up and down”, and that she does not expect people to “overreact”; if she does not expect people to overreact to losing their jobs, then how should they react?
I have not personally told them that, but I am sure they are aware of the economic situation. I understand that redundancies are difficult not just for the individual workers but also for their families and their communities. I would like to quote the chief executive of the Otago chamber of commerce, who said “one thing we know is that those who have been made redundant in other areas have found work relatively quickly”. Skilled staff are being made redundant in an area where there are vacancies for skilled workers, and I am ensuring that our Government agencies are available to help the redundant workers make that transition.
Hon Mark GoscheAs I have said, we do accept that redundancies are very difficult for workers, their families, and their communities. The help that is offered by Government agencies includes literally searching for work; preparing a CV and practising for interviews; examining individual workers’ skills, assessing their options, and retraining them if required; and meeting accommodation, childcare, and other costs throughout the transition. With support from the Government, their employer, and their union, many workers have successfully transitioned into new jobs.
Has she told the 300 Sealord employees in Nelson who are also expected to lose their jobs that this is “not bad news at all actually”, that they are not to overreact, and that this is just figures jumping around; and whilst to her it might just be figures jumping around, does she not know that this is actually about real people losing real jobs?
Yes, I do. I will continue to ensure that Government departments and agencies give every support possible to ensure that those skilled workers are transitioned into new jobs where their skills can be used.
Rt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
Has the Minister received any reports of public bodies or political parties advocating making a change to the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act so that we do not go on having a horribly inflated currency, which is so damaging to exporters, or are we just seeing crocodile tears in this House once more again today?
I am aware of that member’s consistent advocacy for making changes in the Reserve Bank of New Zealand Act and I am certainly aware, as every member in this House is aware, of the crocodile tears of Judith Collins, who asked the primary question.
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. I take offence at that statement, and I would ask you to ask that Minister to withdraw and apologise.
Madam SPEAKERRt Hon Winston Peters Link to this
I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. Surely we do not have members in this House who are so lily-livered that they object to being accused of shedding crocodile tears. If we go along with that sort of request, most unreasonable as it is, given the behaviour of that member and other members on her side of the Chamber, then we will turn this place into a docile, saccharine farce. I think a number of us are against that, even members in the National Party as well.
It is highly offensive to say about people who have lost their jobs that when members on this side of the House raise it, they are simply shedding crocodile tears. These are real people, real jobs, and real families.
Hon Dr Michael Cullen Link to this
Given that the party opposite increased the tax on redundancies in the 1990s and this Government has reduced it, I think “crocodile tears” is a perfectly appropriate phrase.
Everyone has had his or her say. The Speaker intervenes if phrases do cause disorder in the House, but, as members know, if some members do take offence at comments made they may ask for them to be withdrawn and apologised for. That is what has happened in this instance.
Does she stand by her statement in the House last week that a fall of 29,000 in the number of people employed was not about job losses; if so, how does she explain the loss of 11,000 jobs in the construction industry and 6,000 jobs in the manufacturing industry in the past year alone, and if these are not job losses, then what are they?
As I endeavoured to explain to the member last week, the household labour force figures were not a reduction in the number of jobs in the New Zealand economy, they were a reduction in the number of people who were in paid employment. Had those people been looking for work, or registered as unemployed, then those figures would have reported that. They did not. Overall, the decrease in jobs in that quarter is nearly exactly the same as the increase in those jobs in the previous quarter, and therefore that sort of volatility in quarterly surveys should be treated with caution.
Is she still saying that there have not been significant job losses in the construction industry; if so, can she explain why she does not consider as significant the loss of 11,000 jobs?
I advise the member again to look at all those figures within the overall context, and then she might reflect on the fact that approaching quarterly trends with caution is appropriate.
Hon Jim AndertonHas the Minister received any reports that the last time the National Party came from Opposition into Government it promised to halve unemployment and doubled it, and at the same time, has she received reports on the number of jobs that this Government has created since it was elected in 1999?
Yes, I certainly can. Despite the calls and barrage of abuse from the Opposition, the public record will show that unemployment did double during the 1990s and exactly the reverse has happened since 1999.