"Good morning everyone. I will read some names from the list. The people nominated as of today no longer work for the ministry. Let's start: Adam Brown…”.
Stories of ordinary administration in theNew Zealand public administration. Where the Government cuts, and cuts hard and manages to cut quickly. Once the decision has been made, the list of names is drawn up in a matter of a few days. Once the office assembly has been called, the unfortunate person who hears his name will return to his workstation and find a box on his desk to collect his personal belongings.
It has happened to many in these four years of Conservative government. In a country of only 4,5 million inhabitants, where public employees amount to 58, 2.500 people (4,5% of the total workforce) were shown the door and another 2.500 positions left vacant by retired people were not filled. For 2012 it's not over yet: Prime Minister John Key has just created a super ministry that brings together four agencies (Economic Development, Science and Innovation, Labor and Social Housing) and the move does not promise to be painless: it is expected that at least 140 employees (out of the 3.200 currently employed) will lose their jobs. The deal will immediately save the government $11 million. The new Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, called Moby, is tasked with finding ways to save $223 million over the next four years.
In the meantime, even the Armed Forces had to undergo severe slimming treatment: 685 people voluntarily left their jobs, while 297 were made redundant.
In a country where public employees are treated as private employees, the employer can fire the employee if it believes in good faith that the reduction of staff leads to greater efficiency or cost cutting or because the work can be done otherwise, also in outsourcing; if another professional profile is required; or if you locate your business in another area. In short, the sky is the limit for the New Zealand spending review and in these times of economic crisis the Kiwi executive has decided to tighten its belt. Undisturbed.
If it is easier to fire in the southern country, it must also be said that, thanks to a very flexible labor market, it is also easier to relocate. And, in case of difficulty, there's always the Australia resource. New Zealand has in fact signed an agreement with its southern neighbour, for which the boom in raw materials does not seem to end, according to which New Zealand citizens can work in Australia (and vice versa) without having to apply for any visa. It is expected that some of the redundancies in the public sector and in the military will be absorbed by Canberra. Also because if an average civil servant earns 65 thousand New Zealand dollars a year in New Zealand, the salary for the Australian equivalent rises to a good 102.800 dollars. Quite a difference.
