AUCKLAND ACTION AGAINST POVERTY
Media release Wednesday 13 March 2013
Short term census jobs nothing to boast about

Today's statement from Paula Bennett boasting about short term work opportunities at the census call centre simply shows the extent to which the Government is grasping at straws when it comes to job creation.

"The Minister of Social Development must be desperate if she thinks jobs that last for two weeks are any kind of answer to our unemployment crisis," says AAAP spokesperson Sarah Thompson.

"While of course some people will relish the opportunity to have a couple of weeks’ full-time paid work and a reference to add to their CV, this does not begin to address the fundamental problem that we're over 280,000 jobs short in New Zealand.

"We also fear that some people may lose access to entitlements they would otherwise receive because of the complexities of going on and off benefits.

“There is also the risk that benefits may have been cut for those who turned down this short term employment.

“Schemes like this are often used as a way of removing people from income support if they don’t respond to calls soon or appropriately enough to meet Work & Income’s exacting requirements.

“What we need is a very different kind of job creation in which the many New Zealanders who want and need paid work can actually secure genuine paid employment – and that means full time jobs that last a lot longer than two weeks.

ENDS

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