Work Ready New Zealanders on Welfare Amid Labour Shortage Has ‘Got to Stop’: ACT Party Leader

Work Ready New Zealanders on Welfare Amid Labour Shortage Has ‘Got to Stop’: ACT Party Leader
Pedestrians and shoppers on Ponsonby Road in Auckland, New Zealand, on July 27, 2022. Phil Walter/Getty Images
Rebecca Zhu
Updated:

New Zealand’s ACT Party Leader David Seymour said they would put work-ready Kiwis receiving welfare benefits under “income management” to encourage them to take up jobs.

According to the Ministry of Social Development (pdf), of the 170,000 people receiving a Jobseeker Support benefit at the end of September, 98,900 were classified as “work ready.”