New $67,225 income limit threatens jobs for teens

A new parental assistance test in New Zealand will cut Jobseeker support for some 18- and 19-year-olds if their parents earn a combined $67,225. The change follows September quarter data showing unemployment reached 5.7%, leaving 174,000 people without work, an increase of 3,000 from the previous quarter. Among 15- to 19-year-olds, 25.2% are not in employment, training, or education.

Nineteen-year-old Ben Edmonds in Tāmaki Makaurau said he applied for hundreds of jobs, ranging from casual to full-time, but received only one interview. He currently lives away from home and said that after paying weekly rent, power, Wi-Fi, food, and phone bills, he is left with approximately $50. Edmonds described the situation as a misconception that young people do not want to work, noting that earning money the right way is better for him than waiting for free support.

His friend Amiel Porter reported similar difficulties, stating that taking his CV into local businesses had yielded no luck. Porter said the process makes him tired of applying for positions that do not materialize. Ducati Haumaha, also 19, added that getting a job interview is difficult, noting that despite searching for two years, she has only managed to secure one. The three young people are participating in Mā Te Huruhuru's Te Whare Mārama, a work readiness program that assists with interview skills and driver's licenses.

Te Kou o Rehua Panapa, leader of Mā Te Huruhuru's homelessness outreach team, warned that the eligibility changes will place vulnerable young people in more precarious situations. He said the $67,000 threshold is a significant amount of money when considering the cost of rent and food. Panapa noted that some of the young people his team works with are as young as 13 and that the changes may push more onto the streets.

Minister of Social Development Louise Upston told RNZ's Checkpoint programme that the threshold aligns with the income for a couple receiving the Supported Living Payment and will be adjusted annually. She stated that young people who cannot reasonably rely on parental support will remain eligible for aid. Upston said she did not want anyone excluded from a brighter future for New Zealand.

Isaac Gunson of the Child Poverty Action Group argued that the low income threshold will push more families below the poverty line. He said young people are not choosing to be unemployed because jobs are scarce, and the changes may force those in unsafe home situations to remain dependent on parents. University of Auckland professor Terryann Clark said there is no evidence that sanctions improve employment opportunities for young people.

Clark noted that at 18, young people can vote and go to war, but they are still means-tested against their parents' income to live independently. She said this is unfair and punitive. Support available through the Ministry of Social Development for those who do not qualify includes work-readiness programs, driver's license support, Flexi-wage, and the Mayors Taskforce for Jobs.