2018 New Zealander of the Year announced

Equal pay champion Kristine Bartlett has been named Kiwibank 2018 New Zealander of the Year.

Bartlett received the award from the Prime Minister, the Rt Hon Jacinda Ardern. Bartlett was also presented the Kiwibank kaitaka huaki cloak, Pouhine, by 2014 New Zealander of the Year Dr Lance O’Sullivan on behalf of last year’s grand award winner, Taika Waititi.

Bartlett changed the lives of thousands of New Zealand women and low-paid workers by successfully securing landmark equal pay legislation for caregivers in the aged-care sector.

The rest-home carer of 24 years was the face of the challenging campaign for pay equity on behalf of 55,000 low-paid, mainly female care and support workers.

A short film profiling Bartlett can be viewed at https://inner.kiwi/new-zealander-year/kristine-bartlett-equal-pay-champion/

Bartlett’s fellow finalists for the title of Kiwibank 2018 New Zealander of the Year were mental health advocate Mike King and microbiologist Dr Siouxsie Wiles.

Comment from the Chief Judge, Cameron Bennett

“At enormous personal sacrifice, Kristine Bartlett spearheaded the equal pay movement for caregivers in the aged-care sector. In doing so she has changed the lives of thousands of New Zealand's lowest paid workers, people providing vital health and well-being services to many vulnerable Kiwis.

“Kristine embodies the values of fairness, decency and equity that New Zealanders have long held dear.

“She didn’t seek out admiration or special recognition for what she helped achieve. She saw a need and had the courage of conviction to take action. That makes her a thoroughly worthy recipient of this year’s supreme award.”

Category Winners

• University of Auckland Young New Zealander of the Year: David Cameron (Auckland)
• Metlifecare Senior New Zealander of the Year: Kim Workman (Lower Hutt)
• Mitre 10 Community of the Year: Canterbury Charitable Hospital Trust (Christchurch)
• Sanitarium Innovator of the Year: Team New Zealand Design Team (Auckland)
• Kiwibank Local Hero of the Year: Ricky Houghton (Kaitaia)

Background
The annual New Zealander of the Year Awards are in their ninth year. They celebrate people who use their passion for New Zealand to make our country a better place. They are open to all New Zealanders to honour extraordinary Kiwis whose selflessness, creativity, and vision make us proud to call New Zealand home.
A total of 1,118 nominations were received for the title of 2018 Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year.
Previous winners of the New Zealander of the Year Award are: Taika Waititi (2017), Richie McCaw (2016), Sir Stephen Tindall (2015), Dr Lance O’Sullivan (2014), Dame Anne Salmond (2013), Sir Richard Taylor (2012), Sir Paul Callaghan (2011) and Sir Ray Avery (2010).

New Zealander of the Year Awards Category Winner Biographies

Kiwibank New Zealander of the Year: Kristine Bartlett (Lower Hutt)

Kristine Bartlett changed the lives of thousands of New Zealand women and low-paid workers by successfully securing equal pay legislation for caregivers in the aged-care sector.

The rest-home carer of 24 years was the face of the campaign for pay equity on behalf of 55,000 low-paid, mainly female care and support workers. Kristine’s tireless and inspirational advocacy saw her likened to Kate Sheppard, with her courage and self-sacrifice helping achieve a landmark victory for women in New Zealand.

It took incredible bravery for Kristine to put herself forward as the face of the equal pay movement for caregivers. In doing so she has changed the lives of thousands of New Zealand's lowest paid workers who provide vital health and well-being services.

Kristine’s fight has changed the way we determine the economic value of people, highlighting the need for fairness, decency, and equity. She says the true heroes were union workers who toiled tirelessly to pave a path for other female-dominated industries to challenge their wage rates on the basis they would be paid more if men dominated their workforce.

But the truth is that it was the unassuming Lower Hutt 68-year-old who kickstarted an entire movement to get women a fairer pay deal.

It took five years, three court cases and two appeals but Kristine took on a challenge that represented enormous personal and professional sacrifice. It was a challenge she didn’t hesitate to take on and she was unwavering in her commitment to achieve a landmark victory for public good that sets the standard for pay equity in New Zealand.

University of Auckland Young New Zealander of the Year: David Cameron (Auckland)

David Cameron is helping a generation of young New Zealanders with free and low-cost education programmes. As the founder and CEO of LearnCoach, he helps 80% of New Zealand teens with educational support.

At 14, David was failing at school and was placed in a class for students with behavioural problems. After finally working his way back into mainstream classes, David decided he wanted to help other struggling students, ultimately becoming a secondary school teacher and launching LearnCoach.

LearnCoach helps 135,000 NCEA students with free tutorials online.

In September last year, David launched Flipped, New Zealand’s first Second-Chance-School. This is an instant “pop-up” school, where any room can become a NZQA-qualified classroom (for example, a refugee centre, prison cell or hospital ward) – giving students a second chance at education.

Metlifecare Senior New Zealander of the Year: Kim Workman (Lower Hutt)

Kim Workman was appointed national director for Prison Fellowship New Zealand in 2000. He established the first faith-based prison unit in the Commonwealth, providing a mentoring programme for released prisoners. He was also the principal provider of in-prison restorative justice services.

He joined the Salvation Army to the launch the Rethinking Crime and Punishment strategy and the establishment of Justspeak, a non-partisan network of young people seeking change in New Zealand’s criminal justice system.

Mitre 10 Community of the Year: Canterbury Charitable Hospital Trust (Christchurch)

The Canterbury Charitable Hospital Trust was set up in Christchurch in 2007 to address the issue of people not being able to access medical treatment in the public system for many physical and mental conditions in a timely manner. All the work by surgeons, nurses, dentists, counsellors and associated health staff is provided voluntarily.

The organisation does not receive any government funding and relies on donations, grants and the generosity of the wider community to help Cantabrians in need. It has been developed and led by Dr Philip Bagshaw, who has built up a team of specialists donating services to those in need.

Sanitarium Innovator of the Year: Team New Zealand Design Team (Auckland)

Emirates Team New Zealand’s win in Bermuda was a victory of innovation achieved by the creativity, focus and hard work of its Design Team. Starting late and struggling for funding, the Design Team knew it could not out-spend the bigger teams and would never catch-up in sailing time. The only chance for success would be a bold and innovative design.

The designers took a fresh look at where the America’s Cup could be won or lost and put together a revolutionary design concept that stepped away from their competitors in many areas. While the most visible innovation was the use of “cyclors” rather than grinders, this was just one piece of the complex design puzzle which all had to work together to make the boat fly. The key to the win was use of a sailing simulator, which enabled them to develop concepts more quickly and to get them tested more efficiency than putting the boat in the water.

Kiwibank Local Hero of the Year: Ricky Houghton (Kaitaia)

Ricky Houghton has led He Korowai Trust in Kaitaia since its inception in the early 2000s. His work focuses on ensuring people are freed from adversity and given love, hope and a pathway to a better future.

Over the past 10 years, Ricky has saved more than 550 homes from mortgagee sales in the Far North, keeping 6400 vulnerable Kiwis housed. He has overseen services in justice and whanau development for more than 800 families and created business enterprise worth $10 million using natural resources while taking no personal profit.

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