Scheme to track school-leavers hits a hurdle

Social Development Minister Paula Bennett. Photo / Supplied

A proposal to track New Zealand's 55,000 school-leavers each year until they get either a job or further training hangs in the balance as the country's mayors and government officials argue over its feasibility.

Auckland Mayor Len Brown said he planned to raise the issue in a private one-hour meeting with Prime Minister John Key yesterday, but did not have time in the end.

Otorohanga Mayor Dale Williams, who chairs the 64-member Mayors Taskforce for Jobs, said Social Development Minister Paula Bennett had promised to come back to him "in the next three to four weeks" about the proposal.

The mayors presented the proposal last year for a national call centre to ring all school-leavers once to identify the 20 per cent who did not have clear paths into either work or further training, so they could be referred to local agencies for personal support.

The issue blew up publicly last month when the mayors posted minutes on their website of a meeting in which they felt Ms Bennett had treated them with "disrespect".

But Mr Williams said he met Ms Bennett again last week and they agreed that the goal of tackling youth unemployment was "the most important issue to stay focused on".

"Our views are very close," he said. "It's quite ironic that this is a minister that the taskforce agrees with more than any we have ever had."

Young people have suffered more than any other age group in this recession, with 16.8 per cent of would-be workers aged 15 to 24 officially unemployed at the end of last year. Rates were 27.4 per cent for Maori and 27.2 per cent for young Pacific people.

Just under 10 per cent of the total age group, or 62,100 young people, were not in employment, education or training.

The Government currently pays $13 million a year for youth transition services covering 65 per cent of the country to track selected school-leavers judged to be most at risk of dropping out.

But Mr Williams said a judgmental system created resentment.

The mayors believe a national service making at least one contact with every school-leaver could be funded within the current budget by rationalising the existing services.

"You had 14 youth transition services set up in 2005 for $500,000 each. The general reason was right but, as with anything, you grow to absorb the budget," Mr Williams said.

"We believe we can thin down the current services - how much do you need to achieve the simple one-on-one connection process?"

But he said Ms Bennett's officials opposed the proposal.

"Officials are advocating that the principle of connections is the ultimate goal but, dealing with the financial difficulties of the moment, going for a full-on connection for 100 per cent of young people is unachievable," he said.

"We don't agree."

Funding for the existing services has been rolled over one year at a time since the National Government took office and Ms Bennett has told the mayors it will continue for one more year up to June 2012.