About the proposal
The proposal is for a legislative public good test to help ensure restructures can’t go ahead unless they can be justified through a transparent process that would assess how they will affect the services agencies provide, and the obligations agencies have to New Zealanders.
The proposal sets out a list of things agencies would need to consider, and a high-level summary of how the process would work.
We propose that the requirements should apply widely and include the funded sector. At a minimum, a legislative public good test could be contained in the Public Service Act 2020 and apply to State services as defined in the Act; this would go beyond the core Public Service and apply to all instruments of the Crown in respect of the Executive Government. In addition, it should be extended to cover local government, and to publicly funded services as a condition of public funding.
Read a fact sheet about the proposal.
Reckless Restructures report
As well as setting out our proposal for a public good test, our report Reckless Restructures: How to stop the damage caused by restructuring also includes the voices of PSA members sharing the damage that restructures have done in their organisations.
Read the full Reckless Restructures report.
Why we need a public good test for restructures
Thousands of publicly funded jobs have been cut over the current term of government as the result of organisational restructures, with thousands more planned by 2029. Blunt targets, like baseline savings requirements or headcount reductions, do not represent strategic approaches to public sector reform. Enacted through rushed restructure processes with insufficient analysis and a lack of transparency, they represent a chaotic and reckless attack on our public services, and on the foundations of our economy.
We have consistently seen a lack of analysis from agencies about the effects that restructures will have on the services they deliver, and a lack of transparency for the public about what it will mean for them. Our proposed public good test is intended to address this, so that restructures have to be assessed against a clear set of criteria so it's transparent what the effects will be.
What happens next
Our proposal is a starting point for legislation, and we’ll be talking to members in coming months about the detail underpinning it.
We will also be talking to members and employers about what we can do to make sure the considerations we’ve set out in our public good test are considered in any restructures that take place.
Media about the public good test
PSA media release - Enough is enough: public good test needed to stop Govt's reckless restructures
PSA media release - Labour backs PSA’s call for public good test
As mass layoffs loom, PSA wants limits on agency restructures - Newsroom
