Balancing acts

How technology enables and restricts employees

The New

Zealand

Productivity

Commission

(Te Kōmihana

Whai Hua o Aotearoa) advises the Government on the best ways employees can be productive to support wellbeing and how technology benefits, but also disbenefits, the workplace.

The commission is an independent Crown Entity that started in 2011 after the New Zealand Productivity Commission Act was passed in 2010.

The commission conducts inquiries on topics the Government suggests, investigates how the topic can improve productivity over time, and lets the Government know the underlying issues involved.

The Government requested the commission to conduct an inquiry regarding technological change, disruption, and the future of work.

The commission wrote a final report with recommendations on how to improve productivity and support people’s wellbeing by understanding the benefits and disadvantages of technology in the workplace.

The benefits:

• Technology creates many jobs for people, rather than replaces jobs

• There isn’t much sign of an emerging technological disruption

• Aotearoa needs more advanced technology, as it benefits the economy and workplace productivity

• Aotearoa is well-placed for faster technology adoption in some areas - Aotearoa’s policy settings generally support openness to ideas, goods, services, investment and skills.

The disadvantages:

• Important skill levels in schools are decreasing

• Due to the housing crisis it’s hard for some workers to move to better jobs

• Businesses in general lack dynamism compared to other countries

• Aotearoa should build on its strengths and address its weaknesses:

• Policy changes could be created to prepare Kiwi individuals for the future of work, making training more flexible and accessible

• Improve and increase the amount of careers advice and employment support that’s available

• Address the school system performance

• Update employment law to make people more aware of how technology is changing some workplaces and make it easier for employers (like contractors) to gain benefits like insurance and training opportunities.

Read more about what the commission found when completing its inquiry here: www.productivity.govt.nz/ inquiries/technology-and-thefuture-of-work.

To conclude - technology matters for productivity and wellbeing, but also impacts the future of work.

Firstly, the country is flexible, very skilled, and has a lot of support for people who can provide goods, services, data, ideas, technologies, and investments.

However, Aotearoa also has its disadvantages that limit people’s ability to adopt technology in the future and/or make it harder for some people to adapt to the technological changes.

For instance, there’s a poorer socio-economic disadvantage for minorities such as Māori and Pasifika communities, and Aotearoa (by international standards) seems less enthusiastic about emerging technologies impacting Aotearoa’s social and economic aspects.

A link to the final report can be found here: www. productivity.govt.nz/assets/ Documents/223e187413/At-aglance_Technological-changeand-future-of-work.pdf

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