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Te Pukenga, the education organisation that has taken over the 16 polytechnics and most industry training organisations, is planning to put all the polytechs under a single brand this year.
About 950 staff have been impacted by changes at Te Pūkenga – New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology – as part of its restructure.
Affected staff will be able to apply for more than 550 new positions. However, 404 will not, in a move slammed by the Tertiary Education Union (TEU).
Chief executive Peter Winder described the proposed changes as a “significant step forward” and that the consultation was part of a phased strategy defining the future operating structure for the entity.
“Having managed this significant transition, we’re now actively seeking kaimahi (staff) input into our new operating structure which will help realise the benefits of a unified national organisation committed to being equitable and responsive at regional and local levels.”
READ MORE:
* Staff ‘gutted’ as details about Te Pūkenga restructure emerge
* Hundreds of jobs may be cut across country’s polytechs as part of Te Pūkenga restructure
* Several hundred jobs to go at University of Otago as student numbers plunge
* Low staff morale and hundreds of job losses but Te Pūkenga boss adamant polytech merger was the right move
Te Pūkenga is the largest vocational education provider in New Zealand, formed when the country’s 16 Institutes of Technology and Polytechnics merged in April 2020.
The mega polytech flagged it would be consulting staff this week as part of its “organisational design and change programme”.
On Wednesday, staff were feeling “shocked” and “gutted” after hundreds found out their roles were impacted without also receiving information about what new roles would be available for them to apply to.
The full proposal released on Thursday includes a new organisational structure for five of the eight groups within Te Pūkenga: delivery, academic systems, Te Tiriti outcomes, learner and employer experience and attraction.
Tom Lee/Stuff
Te Pūkenga chief executive Peter Winter says the new “unified structure” would remove duplication while it would aim to limit redundancies as much as possible. However, it included a total net reduction of 404 roles.
In a written statement, Winder said the entity had not been immune to the financial challenges seen by other tertiary institutes like Otago University or Te Herenga Waka–Victoria University of Wellington, where hundreds of job cuts are also planned.
“Like the rest of the tertiary sector, we have also faced considerable financial headwinds. Our change proposal seeks to address the challenges inherent in the previous system.”
A “unified structure” would remove expensive duplication and inefficiencies in the system, he said.
ROSA WOODS/STUFF
“The system’s broken” – Education Minister Chris Hipkins announces changes to vocational education sector in February 2019.
Te Pūkenga would avoid redundancies as much as possible, by redeploying affected staff into new roles, and managing vacancies, he said, however, the proposed structure included a total net reduction of 404 full-time roles.
Staff would be invited to provide feedback on the change proposal during a five-week consultation period starting this week, with final decisions expected in August.
“We have a wealth of talent across Te Pūkenga and are committed to retaining our people and giving them the first opportunity to take up new roles,” Winder said.
TEU organiser Daniel Benson-Guiu described it as another blow to an organisation already understaffed and under resourced, with most of the job losses coming from middle management.
“None of the people whose jobs are proposed disestablished have been sitting around with nothing to do. They are all hardworking people whose work will have to be picked up by those who stay behind.”
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