Senior Policy Advisor

Discover a career with purpose at MBIE

• Join the Health & Safety Policy team or Employment Standards Policy team within the Workplace Relations and Safety Policy branch.
• Contribute to shaping New Zealand's health and safety or employment standards systems.
• Solve complex economic, regulatory and stewardship problems.
• Work with regulators, businesses, and other stakeholders on high profile work.
• Wellington Central location.
• Salary range: $110,098 - $138,028 p.a. plus Kiwisaver and Wellness Benefits. 

Our Senior Policy Advisors play a significant role in the regulation of work in New Zealand. You’ll be part of a team with a policy programme that directly impacts the lives of most New Zealanders. Our policy advice spans areas like the minimum wage, the Holidays Act, pay transparency, employment law, parental leave, modern slavery, migrant exploitation, health and safety regulations and ACC settings.

   
You will work closely with your team and our policy leaders to support a high performing branch that is also a great place to work.

 
We have vacancies in the following high performing policy teams:

• Health and Safety Policy 
• Employment Standards Policy 

We’re looking for:

• logical thinkers and problem solvers with a healthy level of curiosity
• people who enjoy working on complex problems, generating ideas and coming up with solutions
• team players who can build relationships with others and work collaboratively, navigating through ambiguity to deliver results.
   

About the teams:

Health and Safety Policy

New Zealand’s workplace fatality rate is high compared to countries like Australia and the United Kingdom. 
 
Workers, organisations, and businesses spend a lot of time and money trying to comply with health and safety rules and regulations, to keep themselves, their workers and those affected by their work safe.
 
How do we make sure businesses, organisations and workers are focused on addressing the things that are causing harm, understand what it is that they need to do to comply with the law and keep people safe, and are clear on how the health and safety system works and their role in it?

You’ll be part of a team that is working to answer these questions.
 
The Health and Safety Policy team lead advice on strategic issues across work health and safety and energy safety including regulatory reform, system priorities, system performance and interfaces, oversight of system levers and funding matters.
 
The work involves a mix of strategic and regulatory work and support for WorkSafe’s operational policy development.
 
Our current work programme includes a first principles review of the health and safety regulatory framework, starting with public consultation; advice on regulator and system performance measures and targets; and advice on potential controls on working with engineered stone to address risks of silicosis.
 
You will have a portfolio of work ranging from leading on discrete items of regulatory reform through to involvement in a project team advising on broader system issues like the regulatory framework and system performance and governance.

You’ll be working in a friendly team that values and supports your development and creates an environment that enables you to be proactive and take ownership of your work.
 

Employment Standards Policy 

We advise Ministers on the minimum employment standards that apply to all workers. Our work ensures that settings remain relevant and fit-for-purpose, while responding to the changing economic context and new technology.   

Our advice balances the protection of workers with compliance costs for employers and encourages innovation above minimum standards. The work we do is often at the centre of political debates about the complex relationships between regulation, productivity, and wellbeing.  

Our team is friendly and supportive of one another. We value the ability to work through complex issues and develop practical solutions. 

What we do:  

• The work programme includes reviewing the minimum wage and the Holidays Act, work on parental leave, and the boundary between employee and other kinds of working arrangements. 
• Our work provides great opportunities to work on challenging issues and see proposals through the policy development, legislative, and implementation stages.  
• The team works closely with Employment Services, which enforces minimum standards, and we are part of the Workplace Relations and Safety Policy Branch, which leads the Government’s advice on workers and workplace issues. 
   

About the branch

The Workplace Relations and Safety Policy branch operates as a team and not as a hierarchy. You’ll be responsible for providing advice and will have plenty of opportunities to discuss it directly with Ministers. You’ll be part of a team filled with smart and committed policy professionals with excellent policy craft skills and domain knowledge. We have a positive and engaging work environment in which you can thrive while addressing some of the tricky policy issues that impact New Zealand’s businesses and workers.  
 
Given the unique nature of our systems, you will enjoy working collaboratively and alongside others, including Māori. You’ll be up for a full and interesting work programme that attracts significant attention.  
 
We are focused on developing our people and with the wide variety of work across the branch there are often opportunities to work with other teams on projects that will help you grow and build your experience and to achieve your career goals.
 
All of our teams work closely with our operational counterparts, so you’ll get good experience at making sure our policies are well implemented.

Tēnei tūranga - About the Role:

Our Senior Policy Advisors work on complex and high-profile government policy projects. They apply their policy expertise to deliver results for New Zealand. They use their strong communication and influencing skills to engage and work collaboratively with various groups. They have great knowledge of legislative frameworks and processes, Te Tiriti o Waitangi principles, and a strong understanding of the wider political environment to better position New Zealand for the future.

Our Senior Policy Advisors work across different levels to share their own knowledge with others. With the wide variety of work across the different policy areas, there are numerous development opportunities to grow and build their careers within MBIE.
 

Ngā pukenga me ngā wheako e hiahiatia ana - Skills and Experience Required:

We are looking for motivated people with experience in solving complex problems and formulating high-quality policy advice.

Ideally you will:

• have experience leading complex policy projects within central government
• understand Te Tiriti o Waitangi and have applied it in public policy and in partnership with Māori
• have wide ranging knowledge of policy development disciplines and processes
• have a good understanding of economic principles and the New Zealand economy
• build strong stakeholder relationships, using influencing and engagement skills to gain the cooperation and commitment of others
• have demonstrated capability in working with Ministers, senior public service officials, internal and external stakeholders
• have a passion for leading and coaching others to develop their policy craft and take their careers to the next level
• be able to work through ambiguity and deliver results

Ētahi kōrero mō MBIE - About MBIE:

MBIE's goal is to create a resilient and high-performing economy that delivers real and ongoing quality of life for all New Zealanders.

We do this by working with others to create an environment that supports businesses to be more productive and internationally competitive, enables all New Zealanders to participate in the economy through improved job opportunities and by working to ensure quality housing is more affordable.

People are at the heart of our mahi, our way of working is guided by our values which shape our behaviours.

• Mahi Tahi – Better Together
• Māia – Bold and brave
• Pae Kahurangi – Build our Future
• Pono Me Te Tika – Own It

Our aspirations are echoed in our Māori identity – Hīkina Whakatutuki – which broadly means ‘lifting to make successful'.

MBIE recognises the partnership founded under Te Tiriti o Waitangi between Māori and the Crown and is committed to giving effect to Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We will do this through enduring, meaningful and effective partnerships with iwi, Māori, other Māori groups/organisations and the Crown, as this is critical to enable economic and social development, both for Māori and for wider Aotearoa New Zealand. We are committed to continuing to partner with iwi in order to find new sustainable solutions to address long standing systemic and cross-cutting issues facing Māori and wider Aotearoa New Zealand and we are also committed to identifying opportunities for iwi to lead and creating an enabling environment for iwi to leverage these opportunities.

E mōhio ana a Hīkina Whakatutuki i puea ake te kōtuinga I waenganui i a ngāi Māori me te Karauna i Te Tiriti o Waitangi, ā, kei te whai ia ki te whakaū ake i Te Tiriti o Waitangi. Mā te whai kiko o ngā kōtuinga ahungaroa o ngāi wi, o ngāi Māori, me ētahi atu rōpū Māori ki te Karauna, katutuki tēnei. He āhuatanga nui tēnei e āhei ai ngā mahi whanaketanga ā-ohanga, ā-pāpori hoki ki a ngāi Māori me Aotearoa whānui. E whai tonu ana mātou ki te kōtui atu ki ngā iwi mō te rapu huarahi hou ki te whakaara i ngā kaupapakua roa nei e tāmi ana i a ngāi Māori me Aotearoa whānui, ā, e whai ana hoki ki te tautohu i ngā āheinga kōkiritanga mā ngā iwi, me te tautoko i ngā iwi kia whai mana ake ai ēnei āheinga.

Me pēhea te tono - How to Apply:

Click here to view a position description. All applications must be submitted via our online process and include a Cover Letter and CV outlining your interest and suitability for the role. 

Email Roxana Anderson at roxana.anderson@mbie.govt.nz quoting ref MBIE/15685 if you have any further questions.

Applications close on Friday, 1st November 2024