Employability and New Zealand Welfare Restructuring

The article discusses employability within New Zealand. It outlines a series of initiatives around welfare reform that have targeted disabled people, unemployed groups, lone parents and women reentering jobs, youth, and ethnic groupings. A fourfold critique of employability is suggested around labour market outcomes, social exclusion, human resource development and broader citizenship concerns. Situating New Zealand within the broader welfare-to-work literature, the article identifies how employability constitutes a distinct electoral strategy, and outlines the future direction employability is likely to take.