Feature: Productivity Commission
Technology doesn’t just replace jobs, it also creates them: NZ Productivity Commission Take a peek into the future, as Kia Ora India examines the New Zealand Productivity Commission’s Future of Work report and its current inquiry into New Zealand’s future immigration policies.
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echnology, and its rapid development and adoption, is one of the critical dynamics in the changing world of work. While technological innovation and disruption is nothing new, the increasingly pervasive nature of disruptive technologies and the pace of change will create both opportunities and risks. Understanding the importance of these changes, and a need to manage future opportunities and risks, in February 2019, the New Zealand Minister of Finance, the Minister of Education, the Minister for Economic Development, the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety and the Minister for Government Digital Services requested the Productivity Commission to undertake an inquiry into how New Zealand can maximise the opportunities and manage the risks of disruptive
technological change and its impact on the future of work and the workforce. The Productivity Commission is an independent Crown entity that provides evidencebased analysis and advice about ways to improve productivity in New Zealand. In March 2020, the Commission delivered its final report, which contained 35 findings and made 18 recommendations. As a next step in this review of the wellbeing of New Zealanders, the Government
asked the Commission this year to advise on what immigration policies are fit for New Zealand’s future. The inquiry will focus on New Zealand’s “working-age” immigration system and make recommendations on changes that would best promote “long-term economic growth and the wellbeing of New Zealanders.” A draft report with proposed recommendations will be released in October 2021. A final report will be presented to the Government in April 2022. Why does this inquiry matter? New Zealand has experienced some of the fastest population growth in the OECD, based in large part
on international immigration, and migrant labour plays a significant role in many New Zealand firms and industries. The closure of the border in response to COVID-19 has raised some fundamental questions: Is the immigration system providing the best social, economic and environmental returns for New Zealand? Would different policy settings better promote the wellbeing of New Zealanders?
inzbc 20 | KiaOra India | October 2021 INZBC.ORG india new zealand business council