Auckland, June 27, 2020
How we do help young people who are “off the grid” and have lost connection with the world of work? Some 70,000 to 90,000 young people are not in Employment, Education, or training (NEET) in a given year in New Zealand.
Around 10% of New Zealanders ages 15-24 are long-term NEET, having been disconnected for six months or longer.
The Tauranga Example
The suburb and peninsula of Matapihi, nestled in the heart of Tauranga, provides an example of how difficult youth employment can be – as well as a possible solution.
Government measurements tell one story: high employment, low incomes, limited internet access, and a significant population of young NEETs. Yet, for its community, Matapihi is a beautiful and safe place to live. Te Kura o Matapihi is a thriving immersion school and whānau networks provide housing and other forms of support.
Confounded by this divide between government NEET statistics and the community’s aspirations for their youth, kaumatua Tio Faulkner worked with his community to create a training and work programme for 18 young men.
A one-week block course provided forestry skills training and accreditation, followed by twelve weeks of work experience. In return, the young men had to commit to paying back the costs as they worked.
Preparing the youth
Ranging from 18 to 28, these were young men deemed “unemployable.” They were disengaged from employment and welfare, subject to various social problems, and “off the grid.” Getting them “work ready” meant setting up a whole “life infrastructure” – digging up birth certificates, registering for bank accounts, and learning to fill out time sheets. Faulkner found himself as the head of a whānau – cooking their meals, driving them to work, equipping them with PPE, and checking in on them.
There were immediate differences. Participants started to take responsibility for themselves and their work. They walked taller.
After the first month, they talked about having a sense of purpose each day.
They cared for their own equipment and looked out for each other, taking turns, for example, giving the health and safety “toolbox talk” each shift.
At Christmas, they were able to give money to their families and Faulkner says the regular work helped connect these young men back to their whānau and community.
Sense of belonging
The programme succeeded where the government’s array of social policy and data had failed because of “the whānaungatanga of work” – the relationships that come from shared experiences which provides people with a sense of belonging.
The block course was run out at Waikari Marae in Matapihi, a familiar and safe place for them to learn without the stigma of failure.
As a part of the training and work experience, Faulkner included a module on tikanga Māori and local hapū history. This holistic approach was intensive, personal, and targeted – something virtually impossible to replicate with large-scale government initiatives.
Matapihi and Tio Faulkner show that resilient communities who hold out hope and aroha for their young people and their futures are well placed to do the difficult job of getting our young people reengaged with learning and work.
Rowan Light is a Researcher at Maxim Institute based in Auckland.
