Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
Power Simon: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers 
[Volume:622;Page:17633] 
10.  
SIMON POWER (National—Rangitikei) 
 to the  
Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: Is he satisfied with all the course content of Work and Income job skills courses; if not why not? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY (Minister for Social Development and Employment) 
 on behalf of the  
Associate Minister for Social Development and Employment 
: The content of every course run by or for Work and Income is not a level of operational detail that Ministers would normally be engaged in. I am completely satisfied that with Work and Income help over 86000 clients moved into employment last financial year and hundreds of thousands over the last 5 years. I am satisfied we have the second-lowest rate of unemployment in the OECD I am satisfied that more New Zealanders are in paid employment than ever in our history I am satisfied that employment programmes like Worktrack and Unitrack have excellent results helping thousands of people get a job and I congratulate Work and Income staff on doing so well. 
Simon Power 
: Can he explain why participants in the Work and Income jobs skills courses are forced to take a pig-drawing test given that a registered psychologist has identified the test as “a joke with no scientific validity” and labelled the test “baffling it’s just nonsense.”? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I can. I will be tabling at the end of this question the Unitrack programme week by week with the components of the course and members will notice that as part of the introduction or icebreaker on the first Monday of the course people do this small test. The Unitrack and Worktrack courses provide people who are on an unemployment benefit and who have a risk of becoming long-term unemployed with an opportunity to go through a free work programme that clearly works. Just because people have a university qualification does not mean that they can fill out a CV or have job search or interview techniques. That is what they learn in the course. I say to the member that the people who run those courses have a staggering record of success. They are deeply deeply offended by the fact that that member has taken a 2-minute part of their course and trivialised their outstanding work. 
Georgina Beyer 
: Can the Minister expand on what the basic contents of Work and Income employment courses such as Worktrack and Unitrack are? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I can. The courses of this type cover job-search techniques interview techniques and presentation CV writing covering letters and job applications. The follow-up after the formal course ends with independent job-search activities. People coming on to the unemployment benefit are required to take part in job-search activities. They are required to do so if they are at risk of being long-term unemployed and I am proud of the Work and Income staff who work hard to get people into work. I congratulate them on their efforts and I communicate their resentment at that member for reducing their efforts in this way. 
Judy Turner 
: Is the Minister satisfied with the outcomes of the PATHS ProCare and Workwise initiatives piloted in Manukau by Work and Income; if so can he tell the House how many people have found work after participating in those schemes? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I am satisfied. I am so satisfied that we have just opened the second pilot here in the capital-coast area which will impact on about 4700 people in this region. In the pilot in Auckland around 400 people were involved in the range of programmes that the member is covering. I do not have the exact figures here with me but I can tell the member that across the invalids and sickness benefit population the increase in the number of people moving into work has been about 14 percent for sickness benefit and 17 percent for invalids benefit out of those pilots. We will clearly make a difference. 
Simon Power 
: Has the Minister seen the statement from a graduate who took the course and said: “I was in hysterics. I thought it was a joke but they were serious—the facilitator said it was a test.”; if so what does this say about the quality of the course offered by Work and Income and if it is so good why would the Minister not take the pig-drawing test himself? 
Mr SPEAKER 
: Let me say there were three questions asked and only two can be answered—[ 
Interruption 
] There is a member about to leave the Chamber for being stupid. The member will stand withdraw and apologise. 
Phil Heatley 
: I withdraw and apologise. 
Mr SPEAKER 
: The member is very lucky very lucky that I am so generous on a Thursday. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: Yes I have—[ 
Interruption 
] 
Mr SPEAKER 
: There will be no further jokes of that type. The first time was mildly amusing but the 10th time is distinctly unfunny. 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: I have read the material from the one complainant in this course who is a young man who said he had a job next January to go to. I am afraid unlike the member no one sits on a benefit while we are in control. They will go to look for a job. He complained about that. I also have here the forms from the rest of the people who were on that course. Every single one of them said it helped them to get motivation to get skills and to get a job. Those are the people to listen to not somebody who complained about the fact that he had to go look for a job. Tough luck! Under this Government those people go looking. 
Simon Power 
: Is he concerned that the group of graduates forced to take the test found it demeaning patronising and ludicrous; or does he believe instead that these people were simply being precious about their pig-drawing abilities? 
Hon STEVE MAHAREY 
: The member is wrong. One person who said he had a job in January and did not want to take the job-search activities complained. I am sorry. He will be looking for a job whether that member likes it or not. Everybody else in that course reports that they found the course valuable so that they could go to get a job. If they do a 2-minute exercise at the beginning of it so they have something to laugh about something to get started with while they go on to those job-search activities tough luck. This is a successful course and the member can just eat the pork and swallow it. 
I seek leave to table the Unitrack programme showing what actually takes place there. 
Document by leave laid on the Table of the House.