Action plan | Te mahere mahi

Flax leaves

This action plan will be the core focus of the Southland Murihiku Regional Skills Leadership Group – Te Kahui whakahaere i kā pukeka ā-rohe o Murihiku (RSLG) – for the next 6 to 12 months and will form the basis of the 2023 Regional Workforce Plan update. Our actions have been developed through the lens of our foundation aspirations and are tied closely to all five priority pou.

The following actions require further detailed planning and implementation design to identify the delivery partners, targeted activities, initiatives and investment required to bring them to life. To be successful, this will require a collective, regionally joined-up approach.

As an RSLG, we will lead the coordination, activation, and monitoring of these actions where appropriate, but will be looking to key stakeholders and partners across the region to support, and in some cases lead, on design and implementation.

Priority actions – RSLG led

These are priority actions that are core to the future work programme of the Southland Murihiku RSLG. Actions connect to all five Pou and will be led by the RSLG, with a short to medium term impact horizon (6-12 months to 1-2 years).

Work alongside the range of local and central government initiatives already underway (e.g., Just Transition) to identify synergies and opportunities to work together and ensure work programmes regarding the region’s labour market are complementary where possible.

Expected outcomes

  • The intersection between RSLG and other regional activities is well-articulated and commonly understood across the region and by government agencies.
  • The skills and capabilities required for new industries and technologies are explored and articulated early in the process of strategic planning.

Facilitate a coordinated regional response to labour market aspects of sector and government consultations and initiatives, e.g., immigration settings, health system reforms.

Expected outcome

Southland Murihiku has a clear and consistent ‘voice’ on the region’s labour market and workforce needs.

Collate and advise the education sector on new and/or preferred ways of delivering training across the region, specific skills shortages and the generic and management skills needed to support workforce development in the region.

Expected outcomes

  • Skill acquisition (on-job and in institutions) is timely, relevant, and culturally appropriate.
  • Skill development (on-job and in institutions) is timely, relevant, and culturally appropriate.
  • The workplace environment is culturally and socially safe.

Develop an overarching equity framework that ensures te ao Māori is embedded into all analysis, insights and actions produced by the RSLG in the future.

Expected outcome

Southland Murihiku has a clear and consistent equity tool/framework to guide insights, inform the development and implementation of actions, and support the measurement and evaluation of their impact to ensure equity for Māori.

Undertake research and analysis to better understand the opportunities provided by those categorised as ‘underutilised’ in the labour market.

Expected outcome

Greater understanding of the untapped potential of these people, and the range of ways in which they could be encouraged and supported to more fully engage with the region’s labour market.

Priority actions – RSLG supported

These are priority areas that the Southland Murihiku RSLG will contribute to by facilitating, or by supporting key stakeholders and partners (short to long term/ongoing).

Connect support services and employers with each other to enable collaboration, sharing of ideas, and practice (with a particular focus on rakatahi).

Expected outcomes

  • Examples of good pastoral care services and initiatives are shared across the region and implemented where possible.
  • Rakatahi have easier and more equitable access to these services.
  • Collaboration between services helps direct rakatahi to the right places without delay.
  • Enable long-term, proactive, and a more sustainable form of delivery that is focused on the needs of rakatahi.
  • Connect to recommendations regarding career pathways and advice.

Contribute a ‘one’ labour market voice to the development of a clear strategy that promotes Southland Murihiku as an ideal destination for workers to live, work and play.

Expected outcome

The Southland Murihiku ‘brand’ is well-recognised and marketed to a wide range of workers, both offshore (migrants and returning New Zealanders) and nationally.

Ongoing actions – RSLG partnerships

These are ongoing priority areas that the Southland Murihiku RSLG will contribute to by facilitating or supporting key stakeholders and partners (likely to require leveraging off existing initiatives or contributing to the development of new work programmes external to the RSLG).

Partner with central and local government agencies, employers, trade unions, iwi/Māori, NGOs, etc.

  • Support cross sector and inter-regional planning to improve working conditions – with a particular focus on remote locations, seasonality and intermittent demand.
  • Support the greater use of procurement levers, e.g., Regional social procurement policies, Southland-wide approach to government and large private tenders.

Partner with WDCs and education providers, employers, trade unions, Murihiku Regeneration, etc.

  • Support a sector-wide approach to changing the poor perceptions of working in these four initial priority sectors - promoting the sectors’ diversity of roles and career pathways available.
  • Support the mapping and promotion of career pathways and entry points to these four initial priority sectors, to support transition into and clear pathways through the sectors.
  • Promote initiatives to improve the career advice and practical support our rakatahi receive.
  • Support employer and learner uptake of apprenticeship programmes and other government-funded training options, with resources readily available to encourage this participation.
  • Explore integrating drivers licencing into the education system or establishing a pipeline to speed up the process of licencing.

Partner with Murihiku Regeneration, iwi/Māori, trade unions, Māori health providers, etc.

  • Support the development of an intergenerational model, supporting not only rakatahi but also whānau, creating a stronger relationship between family/support services/employers/education providers.
  • Work with iwi, unions/workers and employers to strengthen the place of Māori in the Manufacturing sector - in particular, health and safety outcomes and career progression.
  • Work with iwi to better understand the shape and implications of Māori-led tourism and hospitality in Southland Murihiku.
  • Support the development of a holistic health plan for rakatahi, encompassing principles like ‘Te Whare Tapa Whā’, used to support all types of youth health problems.
  • Work with iwi and Māori health providers to authenticate te ao Māori models of practice that attract Māori into the health sector.

Partner with Great South, Chamber of Commerce, Murihiku Regeneration, employers, trade unions, etc.

  • Promote and share good practice tools and training that foster safe, supportive workplace environments and a positive culture among staff, e.g., supporting the retention of older workers and the sharing of their knowledge; leadership capability; encouraging a more diverse, but also inclusive, workforce; promoting flexible work practices; providing quality on-job training and development, and paying living wage at a minimum.
  • Promote and share strategic, governance and capital investment best practice and information.