# PF126: For the 2026 New Zealand general election: What are parties offering on job creation, wages, retraining and employment rights? Collected 19 October 2026 [NZ Election 2026 · Edition 4 study](https://nzbrands.ai/research/nz-election-2026/editions/4) ## ChatGPT Answer ID: c3355e3c-c01e-4d68-9b4b-d818876cf61d # New Zealand election 2026: Jobs, wages, training and workers’ rights Policy snapshot · 18 October 2026 · Nationwide New Zealand’s general election is on Saturday 7 November 2026. The parties differ on a central question: should government create jobs and lift incomes through public investment, stronger employment protections and training, or mainly through business growth, lower regulation and incentives to hire? [The main parties vying to form New Zealand's next government](https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/main-parties-vying-form-new-zealands-next-government-2026-10-12/)[Policies for Party vote - NZ Election 2026](https://policy.nz/2026/party-vote/policies/incomes-and-employment) Here is a comparison of the main parties’ published positions, focusing on four issues that affect workers, jobseekers, apprentices and employers. These are campaign commitments, not guaranteed outcomes. ## 1. Job creation and employment ![Will National Party Finish 2nd in New Zealand's 2026 Election?](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/LCDs4P76HEgfCayafHeSga8GCw12Vxs2fPc3toeyLUZ-wmb6UiGRZY6bhdT1xRejtICfUd6GX2BWmI76EkpoWuffTU4g32bP_qUJp29rsfn5_Zvj5THHSYTLHSoo_5_YQyZ3zKE1WIpB4bu7raRltFl5TZFCgCcE0quf_GohkFI?purpose=inline) National Focuses on growing private businesses, expanding export markets, reducing red tape and encouraging investment. Its economic policies include support for small businesses and making it easier to develop commercial buildings. Its broader approach is to create conditions for businesses to hire rather than relying primarily on government-created jobs. [2026 Election Policy](https://www.national.org.nz/policies)[The main parties vying to form New Zealand's next government](https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/main-parties-vying-form-new-zealands-next-government-2026-10-12/) Emphasis: private-sector growth and investment. ![South Island Election Conference 2026](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/_spFKDBqOMVPoo8r35YLoGFwljs_-WWe4ur9fdZCfekzAxaUPGA75u8rI9uxOUTssI2hUZN1r4Zu1AeDrcNaxz3uHoFIyWjDpanT5s-KJ87QzxSu1uNjNL4MOHSuazRZuTy_TzC6aN4wxHHoyU_DhzMFuMCMjNBTtg2xRxOZL6c?purpose=inline) Labour Its Start Work Now programme proposes building social housing, improving more than 2,000 state and integrated schools, and repairing hospitals. Labour says this will create jobs while addressing infrastructure backlogs. It also promises a job for every eligible New Zealand-trained graduate nurse from 2027. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy) Emphasis: public works, construction and targeted job guarantees. ![Green Party NZ (@NZGreens) on X](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/xwoeA3rTn5Pu0UL1uRc6X_g8ADsfUTe55rxQEjXC_rnFR_6TPTr_9eG0LsowNOdFRtax24qB8h-LRfUtZEf42T0CC5OclOZ5katbFJAYxs0cZRyqDBlGNgF_8AV_5WTCbYonGIqLGuK095lLGrkBVw3L8vdsA06tLHVNuCJquuc?purpose=inline) Green Party Emphasises good jobs through sustainable industries, environmental restoration, stronger public services and support for local businesses. Its 2026 manifesto also focuses on protecting workers from exploitation and ensuring economic prosperity is more widely shared. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026)[Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026) Emphasis: green jobs, community wellbeing and secure employment. ![New Zealand Legislative Election Winner 2026 Odds | Polymarket](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/jofoEEdOXv6HOQzupGnQLgXlZKKPYTzvN6g4IUMlN6xdqX4l_qH5-Y0A3to5ytO5w95eGsg-WLInlnku5FmW0VEyKqhTiAqcZSbr_Z1e_uNyqacdq4zniDKhRNRugVUCsz1-CYpZeG4nO7sLuQKEQlQMBgJCAoyH3nC76yYHd6E?purpose=inline) ACT Argues that job creation and higher wages depend on productivity, business investment, entrepreneurship and reducing regulatory costs. Its small-business package aims to make it easier for employers to take on workers, particularly those entering the workforce. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/policies/economy)[ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/backing-small-business) Emphasis: business-led growth and fewer employment-related costs. ![New Zealand legislative election winner? Predictions & Od... 2026 | Polymarket](https://images.openai.com/static-rsc-4/UmXClDd76aKEk_XyXfEEacFBHXO18HFMG1Im-weRm7tb64uGzBsRK3vWPXuiFN2zaWaNznb7eSDIJucKOhlXtwb6Lq-BYR6oxisKzHsWTxF5AsiLmtcNGDNtwCsXzgIuSp2vW4pa6pAda-tTriG23zKX1ZuknQ81HGh411pqRkM?purpose=inline) New Zealand First Supports economic development through infrastructure investment, regional growth and changes to business taxation. It has also announced additional Youth Guarantee places and more Trades Academy places, aiming to help young people gain the skills needed for work. [Our Policy](https://www.nzfirst.nz/policy)[Budget 2026: Common sense wins for NZ First](https://www.nzfirst.nz/budget_2026_common_sense_wins_for_nz_first) Emphasis: infrastructure, regional development and pathways into work. ## 2. Wages, minimum pay and retirement savings | Party | Published position | | --- | --- | | National | Proposes compulsory KiwiSaver for all workers, alongside a Crown-funded savings start for children. Its main employment emphasis is economic growth rather than a new minimum-wage increase commitment in the policies reviewed. [2026 Election Policy](https://www.national.org.nz/policies) | | Labour | Promises to restore pay-equity legislation, provide care and support workers with an immediate $4-an-hour pay rise from 1 January 2027, and progressively raise compulsory employer KiwiSaver contributions to 6% by 2032. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy) | | Green Party | Advocates decent pay, stronger employment protections and a fairer distribution of income. Its manifesto also proposes a guaranteed decent income, funded through changes to the tax system. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026)[Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026) | | ACT | Proposes freezing the adult minimum wage for three years. It argues that wage increases should be supported by productivity growth and proposes a lower training wage for young, inexperienced workers. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act%E2%80%99s-small-business-policy-package-to-clear-red-tape) | | New Zealand First | Proposes increasing the minimum wage every year for the next three years and substantially increasing Working for Families support. [Increasing Working for Families and Minimum Wage](https://www.nzfirst.nz/increasing_working_for_families_and_minimum_wage) | | Te Pāti Māori | Has opposed repealing Fair Pay Agreements legislation, arguing for industry-wide minimum employment standards that can lift wages and conditions, particularly for lower-paid workers. [Te Pāti Māori Stands with Workers](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/te_p_ti_m_ori_stands_with_workers) | The main difference: ACT's proposal would hold the adult minimum wage at its existing nominal level for three years, while New Zealand First explicitly promises annual increases. Labour's clearest quantified pay commitment is its proposed care-worker increase, while the Greens and Te Pāti Māori emphasise broader income fairness and employment protections. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act%E2%80%99s-small-business-policy-package-to-clear-red-tape)[Increasing Working for Families and Minimum Wage](https://www.nzfirst.nz/increasing_working_for_families_and_minimum_wage)[Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy)[Te Pāti Māori Stands with Workers](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/te_p_ti_m_ori_stands_with_workers) ## 3. Retraining, apprenticeships and getting into work Labour — apprenticeships and Māori-led training Proposes support for nearly 30,000 apprentices through its Start Work Now programme, including a $1,000 toolbox grant. It also proposes expanding Apprenticeship Boost and investing $21 million annually in Māori-led training linked to real employment opportunities. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy) New Zealand First — trades and youth pathways Its 2026 Budget commitments include $69 million to double Trades Academy places for secondary students and $87 million for 1,000 additional Youth Guarantee places targeting young people with no or low qualifications. These are announced funding commitments, distinct from any new election promise. [Budget 2026: Common sense wins for NZ First](https://www.nzfirst.nz/budget_2026_common_sense_wins_for_nz_first) ACT — entry-level employment Proposes a training wage at 60% of the adult minimum wage for workers under 20 during their first 12 months with an employer. ACT's stated rationale is that lower initial wage costs would encourage employers to take on inexperienced workers. This is an employment-entry proposal, not a general subsidy for mid-career retraining. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act%E2%80%99s-small-business-policy-package-to-clear-red-tape) Green Party — skills for sustainable work Its manifesto connects good employment with sustainable industries, environmental protection, public services and community prosperity. The available manifesto summary is less specific about a single nationwide retraining entitlement than Labour's apprenticeship commitments. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026)[Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026) For someone changing careers after redundancy, the important distinction is whether a policy pays for training itself, subsidises an employer to take on a trainee, or creates an actual job. Those are three different forms of support. ## 4. Employment rights, job security and unions | Party | Direction of proposed policy | | --- | --- | | National | Emphasises business confidence, employment growth and economic stability. The policies reviewed do not establish a single new headline employment-rights package comparable to ACT's detailed proposals. [2026 Election Policy](https://www.national.org.nz/policies) | | Labour | Promises to restore pay-equity legislation and improve conditions for care and support workers. Its wider employment agenda includes public investment and apprenticeship support. [Labour's 2026 Election Policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy) | | Green Party | Explicitly prioritises stronger employment protections, decent pay, better working conditions, collective worker voice and protection against exploitation. [Manifesto 2026](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026) | | ACT | Proposes allowing protected discussions about mutually agreed employment exits, shortening the time limit for bringing personal grievances to proceedings, and ending compulsory employer collection of union fees. These proposals accompany its commitment to freeze the adult minimum wage. [ACT New Zealand](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act%E2%80%99s-small-business-policy-package-to-clear-red-tape) | | New Zealand First | Its published agenda includes annual minimum-wage increases and stronger support for working families. The material reviewed is less detailed on a broader employment-law package. [Our Policy](https://www.nzfirst.nz/policy)[Increasing Working for Families and Minimum Wage](https://www.nzfirst.nz/increasing_working_for_families_and_minimum_wage) | | Te Pāti Māori | Supports industry-wide fair-pay standards and opposes the repeal of Fair Pay Agreements legislation. It argues that sector-wide bargaining can improve pay, job security and working conditions. [Te Pāti Māori Stands with Workers](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/te_p_ti_m_ori_stands_with_workers) | These differences matter beyond hourly pay. For example, the parties' proposals could affect how easily an inexperienced worker enters employment, how workers negotiate conditions collectively, and what options employees have if an employment relationship breaks down. ## 5. How to compare the offers that matter to you The clearest way to assess these policies is to match them to the outcome you care about. - If your priority is getting people into work: compare Labour's public-works programme and job guarantees with National's business-growth approach and ACT's proposed incentives for hiring younger workers. - If your priority is higher wages: look closely at New Zealand First's annual minimum-wage proposal, Labour's care-worker pay rise, ACT's proposed wage freeze, and the Greens' wider income and employment agenda. - If your priority is retraining or an apprenticeship: examine Labour's apprenticeship support and Māori-led training, New Zealand First's Trades Academy and Youth Guarantee funding, and the eligibility requirements attached to each programme. - If your priority is job security and employment rights: compare the Greens' and Te Pāti Māori's support for stronger worker protections and collective bargaining with ACT's proposed changes to employment processes and wage-setting. One important qualification: a promise to create jobs does not guarantee a particular number of jobs will materialise, and a proposed wage rise does not by itself establish how employment, prices or hours worked would change. Those outcomes depend on implementation, economic conditions and employer responses. ## Sources to explore further - [Policy.nz — 2026 incomes and employment policy comparison](https://policy.nz/2026/party-vote/policies/incomes-and-employment?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [National — 2026 election policies](https://www.national.org.nz/policies?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [Labour — 2026 election policies](https://www.labour.org.nz/policy?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [Green Party — 2026 manifesto](https://www.greens.org.nz/manifesto_2026?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [ACT — small-business and employment policy announcement](https://www.act.org.nz/news/act%E2%80%99s-small-business-policy-package-to-clear-red-tape?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [New Zealand First — published policies](https://www.nzfirst.nz/policy?utm_source=chatgpt.com) - [Te Pāti Māori — workers and Fair Pay Agreements](https://www.maoriparty.org.nz/te_p_ti_m_ori_stands_with_workers?utm_source=chatgpt.com) The party comparison on Policy.nz is a useful starting point because it lets you compare detailed policies by topic rather than relying on campaign slogans. Check the parties' own policy pages for eligibility rules, start dates and any subsequent updates before treating a proposal as a firm commitment. ## Gemini Answer ID: d8797374-0c5f-4e12-8b71-3550642463de As New Zealand heads toward the **7 November 2026 general election**, the major political parties have laid out distinct platforms regarding the economy, employment, workforce development, and industrial relations. An overview of what the primary parties are offering across **job creation, wages, retraining, and employment rights** highlights these core proposals: --- ### 1. Job Creation and Economic Growth * **The National Party:** Focuses on broad economic management, infrastructure investment, and business tax incentives (such as the "Investment Boost" tax initiative) to stimulate private-sector growth, business investment, and long-term job creation. * **The Green Party:** Proposes targeted public job creation schemes, such as a **job guarantee programme** specifically centered on ecosystem regeneration, conservation, and environmental projects. * **The Labour Party:** Emphasizes protecting frontline public sector services, strengthening industry partnerships, and investing in regional and workforce development to secure stable employment. ### 2. Wages and Incomes * **The National-led Government / Right-leaning Approach:** Focuses on growing net take-home pay through tax relief and broad economic settings rather than aggressive state-mandated wage hikes. * **ACT New Zealand:** Proposes a **three-year freeze on the adult minimum wage** to ease cost pressures on small-to-medium businesses. They also propose introducing a lower training wage (set at 60% of the minimum wage) for workers under 20 during their first year of employment. * **The Labour Party and Left-leaning Parties:** Advocate for stronger wage growth, opposing minimum wage freezes, supporting fair pay agreements/sector-wide pay equity processes, and pushing for living-wage requirements in government procurement and service contracts. ### 3. Retraining and Upskilling * **Health and Essential Workforce Focus:** Multiple parties have emphasized funding and training initiatives aimed at critical sectors facing severe shortages (such as health care, mental health, and trades). This includes expanding training pipelines and supporting targeted upskilling for domestic workers. * **Incentives for Older Workers:** Proposals from progressive parties also target active support and incentives for businesses to retain, hire, and retrain older workers to bridge localized skill gaps. ### 4. Employment Rights and Industrial Relations * **ACT New Zealand:** Advocates for significant deregulatory measures in employment law, including **shortening the time limit for lodging a personal grievance** with the Employment Relations Authority from 3 years down to 90 days (though sexual harassment claims would remain exempt). They also propose making payroll deductions for union fees strictly voluntary rather than automatic. * **National:** Has focused on maintaining flexibility for employers, alongside adjustments to the Holidays Act and health-and-safety compliance frameworks to reduce red tape for businesses. * **The Labour and Green Parties:** Take a pro-worker stance on industrial relations, which includes protecting or expanding collective bargaining rights, supporting default union membership options (opt-out systems), reversing recent restrictions on health and safety worker protections, and strengthening personal grievance and pay-equity frameworks. --- *Are there specific sectors (such as health, education, or small business) or particular parties whose detailed policies you would like to explore further?* ## Google AI Mode Answer ID: ebf8e916-505d-4218-9030-19d299e74a5b For the 2026 New Zealand general election, political parties have outlined contrasting approaches to job creation, wages, retraining, and employment rights against a backdrop of rising unemployment and economic pressures. **The Green Party** * * **Wages and Retraining:** The Green Party proposes to completely abolish the training wage and starting-out wage (currently set at $19.16, or 80% of the adult minimum wage) to ensure apprentices and trainees receive the full adult minimum wage ($23.95). Co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick argued that low pay and financial stress are driving apprentice numbers to multi-year lows. * **Retraining and Support:** The Greens propose a $2,000 apprentice equipment grant, a $30 million annual funding uplift targeted at Māori and Pasifika apprentices, and a $2,000 completion bonus for employers who support trainees through their qualifications. [1News] * **Job Creation:** The party highlights ecosystem regeneration and public works job guarantee programs as part of its economic platform. [Policy.nz] * **ACT New Zealand** * * **Wages:** ACT advocates for pro-business labour adjustments, proposing to freeze the adult minimum wage for three years and reduce the training minimum wage for workers under 20 down to 60% of the adult minimum wage (from 80%) to incentivize youth hiring. * **Employment Rights:** ACT proposes setting a strict 90-day limit for employees to raise personal grievances with the Employment Relations Authority (though sexual harassment claims would retain an exception allowing up to three years). [The Spinoff] * **Business and Jobs:** ACT focuses on tax and regulatory relief for small businesses, such as allowing easier deductions for IT and software investments to spur productivity and private-sector employment. [The Spinoff] * **New Zealand Labour Party** * * **Job Creation and Training:** Labour proposes expanding the _Apprenticeship Boost_ scheme and introducing targeted measures like guaranteed graduate nurse placements. They are also campaigning on competition reforms and consumer protection laws (such as Fair Go rules for drivers and anti-price gouging frameworks) to safeguard domestic industries. * **Cost of Living and Incomes:** Rather than direct wage mandates, Labour’s platform centers on reducing cost-of-living pressures through policies like free doctor visits, free prescriptions, and a $20-a-week public transport fare cap, alongside a 10% student loan cut. * **The National Party and Government Record** * * **Employment Rights and Legislation:** The NZ Council of Trade Unions (NZCTU) and various labour advocates point to the National-led government's legislative track record during the parliamentary term leading into the election. This includes the passage of the Employment Relations Amendment Act (altering collective agreement frameworks) and structural debates around leave entitlements. * **Wages and Economic Strategy:** National's broader economic strategy emphasizes curbing government spending, public sector restraint, and driving economic growth through business competitiveness rather than state-backed wage interventions, holding that real wage growth relies on overall economic productivity. * NZ Labour Party Labour's 2026 Election Policies Jobs/Education/Business: 10% student loan cuts, guaranteed graduate nurse jobs, expanded Apprenticeship Boost, a 28% capital gains... Policy.nz Policies for Party vote - NZ Election 2026 Create a job guarantee programme for jobs focused on ecosystem regeneration. Read more. Restore pay equity deals. Increase the min... NZCTU Policy scorecards for working people NZCTU 2 Oct 2026 — The National-led Government introduced and supported the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2026, which removed the 30-day rule