Trial Period Gives Young People A Shot At Work

Employment & Youth Affairs Minister Paula Bennett welcomes the extension of the 90-day trial period, saying it will give more young people work opportunities.

"This will open up the way for more employers to give young people a go, which is particularly important in the current economic climate," says Ms Bennett.

The Department of Labour’s evaluation of the trial period shows that almost half of the employees hired by employers in the trial period survey were aged 15 to 24.

The evaluation showed 74 per cent of those hired on a trial period retained their employment afterwards.

“This shows the intent of the 90-day trial period has worked – by giving people a shot at a job and therefore increasing their opportunities in life,” says Ms Bennett.

“I’m acutely aware of the pressure young people are under as New Zealand recovers from a recession and the Government has been focussed on alleviating that,” says Ms Bennett.

Last August National announced the Youth Opportunities package, which included the Jobs Ops and Community Max schemes.

"In Budget 2010 we doubled the number of Job Ops places to 12,000 and last month extended Community Max, adding another 1,500 places for young people,” says Ms Bennett.

“Overall, the changes announced today will help boost employer confidence to take on more staff, and that can only be good for employment,” says Ms Bennett.

ENDS

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