17 June 2004
30 Young People To Gain Work Experience At Manukau City Council
The Manukau Youth Employment Cadet Scheme is about to kick off for a second year, with 30 unemployed young people being
taken on by Manukau City Council to gain work experience.
The aim is to place all cadets into full-time employment either within Council, its contractors or other organisations.
The cadets start work on July 19 and have recently been preparing for their cadetship on a pre-employment programme run
by Best Training. They are all long term unemployed and under 25. Most have no or few formal qualifications.
The scheme is a partnership between the Council, Tertiary Education Commission and Work and Income. It targets the long
term unemployed and the trial last year was extremely successful. Most of the participants performed beyond expectations
and went on to find full time positions due to their new-found confidence and skills. Many have been placed into
permanent jobs with the Council.
The initiative has been adopted nationwide. It is being supported by the government and many councils are also now
running similar schemes.
The scheme is the result of a new, closer working relationship between the government, social agencies and councils as
part of the “all of government” approach to problem-solving.
There will be a financial benefit to Manukau of approximately $1.8 million because unemployment comes at a high cost. It
is estimated that each person out of work for a year costs $58,000 in lost productivity, health effects and other social
costs.
City Manager Colin Dale says, “I see this project as another form of community-building which the council has been
involved in for many years.
“I welcome the chance to help these young people get a break into the job market and I was delighted at the quality of
the cadets we took on last year. They continue to be excellent employees.”
ENDS