ACC Backs Down Over Māori, Pasifika Injury Targets After ACT Pressure

Lillian
Hanly, Political reporter

ACC
has ditched Māori and Pasifika targets in a new workplace
injury prevention proposal after the ACT party intervened
and forced a National Party minister to make a
U-turn.

ACT had accused the government agency of not
complying with a directive that public services be delivered
on the basis of need not race.

MP Laura McClure said
ACT had negotiated a needs-based approach as a coalition
commitment, and expected to “see our coalition commitments
delivered”.

ACC Minister Scott Simpson supported ACC’s
original tender, citing disproportionate levels of injuries
for those ethnic groups, but later asked the agency to “have
another look” at it.

In April, ACC released a
tender to ‘Deliver Evidence-Based Initiatives to Reduce
the Incidence and Severity of Injuries in the Manufacturing
Sector.’

It specified the need for a supplier to
deliver “outcomes-focused programme initiatives that
cost-effectively reduce work-related injuries”. It included
a target of 5461 claims to be saved in the 10 years after
the project was delivered. At least 18 percent of those
claims saved needed to be from Māori, and 11 percent from
Pacific peoples.

Simpson backed the initiative, saying
the approach aligned with the government’s desire to support
New Zealanders based on evidence of need.

He cited
ACC’s own data that showed Māori and Pacific people
experience “disproportionately high rates of injury in the
manufacturing sector”.

Further information provided
to Newsroom from ACC said in 2024, 18 percent of
work-related weekly compensation claims in manufacturing
impacted Māori while 11 percent of work-related weekly
compensation claims in manufacturing affected Pacific
people. Māori made up 14 percent of the workforce and
Pacific peoples made up 10 percent of the
workforce.

McClure
had written to the Minister, highlighting the targeted
claims in the tender and saying it was “inconsistent” with a
government directive that “public services should be
prioritised based on need, not race”.

She quoted the
Cabinet Office Circular directly, which stated: “Cabinet
expects agencies will recognise that there are many
variables that can be used to identify and assess need, and
that all variables should be considered before ethnic
identity is automatically used to determine need.

“The
circular makes clear that ethnicity should not be used as a
proxy for need and that services must be justified through
empirical evidence about actual disparities and why general
services are insufficient to address them,” she
said.

McClure argued ACC didn’t make an “analytical
case” for targeting a particular population subgroup based
on empirical evidence as required by the circular and asked
for that information to be shared with her if it
existed.

“Is it the view of the Minister that Māori
or Pasifika are inherently more susceptible to workplace
accidents? If ACC has shared any data suggesting that the
difference in injury rates cannot be explained by other
factors such as the risks associated with a particular job,
please share this with me.”

Simpson later backed down,
saying he had considered the issue and “asked ACC to have
another look at the proposed tender”.

“It is important
service delivery aligns with the Cabinet circular and is
based on need.”

ACC’s deputy chief executive strategy,
engagement and prevention Andy Milne confirmed this, saying
a new tender had been issued with the “targets
removed.”

“We invite suppliers to propose programmes
and initiatives focused on outcomes for the wider
manufacturing sector, including all individuals and
communities within
it.”

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