Auckland’s New World Te Atatū draws 300 jobseekers in two days
The opening of a new $50 million Auckland supermarket drew 300 face-to-face job interviews in two days this week.
Scott Jackson, owner/operator of New World Te Atatū, said interviews were being carried out with 300 people yesterday and today.
Last month, Statistics NZ said unemployment was 5.3% in the March 2026 quarter.
Jackson said people applying for jobs at his supermarket were being met at a local Baptist property, partly because of numbers but also because work is still being carried out at the supermarket, not due to open until August.
Shelves are soon to be stacked.
Jackson said 150 applicants were seen on Monday, and a further 150 would be interviewed today.
Yesterday, applicants for customer and stock assistants were interviewed.
Jackson said applicants for a cleaning manager and a night manager were also interviewed.
The new store is opening in a former Woolworths.
About 90 roles are to be filled.
Supermarkets seek staff for checkouts, bakery, butchery, delicatessen, online, seafood, frozen foods, storeroom, forklift driving, fruit and vegetables, management and other areas.
Foodstuffs North Island owns the property.
It owns Pak’nSave, New World, Four Square, Gilmours and Liquorland businesses. It employs more than 20,000 people in about 350 stores.
Scott and his wife, Ashleigh Jackson, will open New World Te Atatū on August 11.
“Our vision is that in 12 months’ time, it looks like it has just been opened: QSC!” said Jackson, referring to quality, service and cleanliness.
The Jacksons had invited 14 staff from their previous store, New World Tawa, to work with them at Te Atatū.
Foodstuffs spent $50 million buying, upgrading and expanding the Woolworths.
About 15,000 residents in the area were without a supermarket on the peninsula because of the big programme.
A Kiwibank economics release out today highlighted the high unemployment rate.
“We see little risk of inflation becoming embedded in the economy through wages. We have a high unemployment rate (5.4%), a high underutilisation rate (13%), and low growth. With wage growth at 2%, we’re at a low starting point,” it said.
The soft labour market was weighing consumer sentiment down.
Auckland Council economic analyst Ross Wilson released Auckland’s household labour force survey to March.
That showed the city’s unemployment rate was 6.6%, a little above December 2025 (6.4%), and the highest since 2014.
The number of Aucklanders unemployed was 69,500 (+ 3400, a 5% rise).
The largest proportionate rise in unemployment rate was for those aged 20 to 24 years, rising to 13.1% from 10.7%, followed by ages 25 to 39 (5.5%, up from 4.4%), and 15 to 19 years (29.2%, up from 25.1%).
The lowest proportionate rises were for ages 40 to 54 years (4.1%, up from 3.6%) and 55 years and over (3.4%, up from 3.1%), Wilson said.
Anne Gibson has been the Herald’s property editor for 26 years, written books and covered property extensively here and overseas.