People

The Accord continues to pursue the four priorities under the People focus area that were originally published in the Transformation Plan 2022-2025. Activity in the People focus area has been prioritised towards standing up projects that could be launched quickly and delivered by external partners.

Priority: Building Leadership Capability

It has been a difficult year for many leaders within the sector. Labour supply has been tight and many businesses owners have been struggling to recruit and retain staff. There are signs that labour shortages are starting to ease, which coincides with an increase in immigration and a decrease in construction demand. Improving leadership capability will equip leaders with the skills they need to operate thriving, sustainable construction businesses that are more resilient and ready to meet labour constraints and other challenges.

The Accord has progressed significant work relating to building leadership capability, however, over the course of the year some of this priority’s initiatives have moved to other parts of the plan. The Building Leaders Advisory Service initiative that was previously in this priority has been subsumed into the new Construction Activator priority, which covers a suite of resources to raise the capability of construction businesses and business leaders. The Network enabler also includes the Construction Leadership Summit, which the Accord co-hosted with Waihanga Ara Rau. This event brought sector leaders together to share lessons and review best practice so they can learn and grow from one another. See the Networks section for more information.

Priority: Workforce Development

Construction workers have been significantly impacted by skills and labour shortages. Although the workforce continues to grow, many of those currently in the sector are working at capacity. The reopening of borders and changes to immigration settings has meant that migrant workers are starting to trickle back into the sector.

Following calls from the industry that we needed to do more to attract international talent to help address labour and skills shortages, the Accord partnered with NZ Story, Association of Consulting and Engineering (ACENZ), the New Zealand Institute of Architects, Master Builders and Civil Contractors NZ to develop marketing collateral for the New Zealand Recruitment Storyteller. This is part of the Construction Sector International Marketing Campaign, which aims to attract and recruit migrants with critical skills to the New Zealand construction and infrastructure sector. The campaign was launched in late June 2023.

However, it's important that the sector continues to work on attracting a diverse range of New Zealanders into the sector. Attitudes towards diversity, equity and inclusion practices appear to be largely positive. The 2022 Accord Survey found that approximately three-quarters of businesses said they are committed to valuing and supporting a diverse workforce.

The Accord is developing a Skills and Diversity Action Plan, which will implement recommendations from the Construction Skills Strategy and the Diversity Roadmap. The action plan will incorporate a stocktake of all current skills and diversity focussed initiatives in the sector, so that the sector can avoid duplicating work and foster the skills that the industry needs, both now and in the future.

The Accord has also been working with the Te Waihanga and Waihanga Ara Rau to develop workforce projections for the post-flood rebuild. This has created an opportunity to accelerate workforce development work that the industry needed and will help provide workforce planning tools that the industry can use in the future. See Emerging issues and opportunities section for more information.

Priority: Strong Māori Construction Economy

A prosperous construction sector in Aotearoa needs to be delivering better outcomes for Māori construction leaders, businesses and workers. As part of its operating model, the Accord facilitates a Māori sector reference group, known as the Kōtuiā te Hono, to drive the delivery of this goal and provide feedback and insights on issues which are affecting the Māori construction sector.

The main priority for Kōtuiā te Hono has been the Māori SME Capability Development initiative, which is a fit-for-purpose business capability service designed for Māori construction businesses, by Māori for Māori. Kōtuiā te Hono is working on delivering a current state and gap analysis that maps the size and distribution of the Māori construction sector, including currently available business support. Kōtuiā te hono has also been scoping the Māori End-to-End Supply Chains initiative, which will help Māori businesses, organisations and iwi collaborate and gain greater ownership across the supply chain.

Priority: Health, Safety and Wellbeing

Health, safety and wellbeing are major issues in the construction sector. Between February 2022 and January 2023, 12 people sadly lost their lives whilst working in the construction sector(external link)  - worksafe.govt.nz. High construction demand mixed with an uncertain economic outlook is affecting workers’ mental health as they deal with stress, burnout and worries about potential job loss. The industry has also been grappling with growing concerns about migrant exploitation.

There is a growing awareness of issues such as mental health and wellbeing. The Accord Survey found that the proportion of construction businesses with systems in place to support the mental health and wellbeing of their workers has increased over the past two years, from 63 percent in 2020 to 70 percent in 2022.

In partnership with Construction Health and Safety NZ, the Accident Compensation Corporation, WorkSafe and MATES in Construction, the Accord is developing a Construction Health, Safety and Wellbeing Strategy. The strategy will incorporate an agreed vision and implementation plan with explicit actions for the Accord and the sector, including key actions incorporated from the Health and Safety by Design Implementation Plan currently being developed as a separate initiative under this priority.

The Accord has also been supporting the establishment of the Thriving Infrastructure Pilots led by WorkSafe and the Business Leaders Health and Safety Forum. This project aims to test whether grouping stakeholders around a shared purpose for collaborative learning and impact can help improve the wellbeing of organisations, communities and people, including improved health and safety outcomes in infrastructure.

In 2022, MATES in Construction approached the Accord alongside other government agencies to help meet a funding shortfall, which would have reduced their ability to provide mental health services across the country. Under the Supporting Workforce Wellbeing initiative, the Accord contributed $225,000 to MATES in Construction towards an evaluation programme of their services. The Ministry of Health is now leading the engagement with MATES in Construction, including supporting them to identify sustainable funding streams.

The sector has also faced increased health, safety and wellbeing risks as a result of the North Island floods. To support the sector's immediate response to the floods, the Accord partnered with Construction Health and Safety NZ and MATES in Construction to provide health, safety and wellbeing guidance for workers accessing flood-damaged sites and disposing building waste. The mental health of workers in flood affected regions remains an ongoing concern as they deal with the damage and impact on their communities. See the Emerging issues and opportunities section for more information.

Next Steps

In the coming year, the Accord will start progressing the Next Generation Leaders Programme to help ensure that there is a pipeline of young talent that is equipped to lead the industry forward.

Kōtuiā te hono will also progress the Kaiako Construction Mentorship Programme to connect Māori working in construction to experienced Māori leaders in order to help them grow their leadership and business skills from a Te Ao Māori perspective.