‘Boarding card but no plane’: Former head boy’s 18-month job search as youth unemployment at ‘crisis levels’

Wednesday, 13 May 2026

Former Naenae College head boy Zion Tiaki spent 18 months searching for a job, leaving him wondering whether he was “good enough”.

Zion Tiaki never imagined it would be so hard to get work when he was head boy at Naenae College. But his 18-month search left him worrying “if I’m good enough” and if unemployment was going to be “a long-term thing”.

“I spent a lot of time at school earning accolades and giving back to the community, but when you step into the real world it’s not recognised in the same way,” Tiaki told Stuff.

“We were told that if you get Level 1, 2 and 3 at NCEA, that will guarantee you a job at entry level. That’s just not the case. I’d got the boarding ticket but no plane.”

The Lower Hutt man was head boy in 2023. Now 20, he is not the only young person who struggled to find a job.

Stats NZ revealed last week that youth unemployment has hit a 10-year high, with the proportion of people aged 15 to 24 not in employment, education or training at 14.4%.

Are you struggling to get a job? Share your name and experience to annemarie.quill@stuff.co.nz

Zion Tiaki struggled to find a job for 18 months.

Traditional entry-level jobs, such as hospitality or retail, are shrinking, with more young people “disadvantaged” and facing “intense competition“ for fewer roles, experts told Stuff.

The total national unemployment rate of 5.3% is more than twice as high for Pasifika and Māori, at 11.9% and11.5% respectively.

One youth support agency said it has been “overwhelmed” by rangatahi desperate for jobs, particularly from lower socioeconomic backgrounds.

18-month job hunt

Tiaki worked as a teacher aide straight after school, and while he was keen to pursue teaching as a career, without the required qualifications he wasn’t able to.

The nerve-racking wait is over for more than 150,000 students, who finally found out their NCEA exam results. But for many school leavers, their biggest challenge now is entering a workforce where youth unemployment continues to rise.

“Weighing up further study, it was a big con. If I added university courses, an increased cost of living and travelling back and forth from university, it would have been hard to balance.

“People have said to me, ‘just go get a loan’, but I don’t want to do that when I’m going to have to spend so much of my working life on the other end paying it back.”

Many friends from school are in a similar position.

“We’re in Taita… the majority of people here weren’t dealt the right cards. It can be hard to jump out of that deck of cards and get into a good set.

“Another friend who has a family of six or seven, he’s trying to manage uni courses on top of supporting them, it’s hard. I spoke to him recently and he’s had to drop down from three courses to just one, because with the cost of living, travel and supporting his family, it became too much.”

After Tiaki’s teacher aide contract finished at the end of 2024, he went through an 18-month stretch of unemployment finding “stigma” from potential employers when he disclosed he was on the benefit.

“It made me feel small. It takes a toll… and it makes you question yourself… am I good enough?

Tiaki sought the support of local charity Youth Inspire. Its chief executive Zainab Ali, right, said youth job support agencies across New Zealand were “overwhelmed”.

“There were times when I went to a networking event and met with business owners… mentioned I was currently on the benefit, the conversation would just cut. You would immediately notice the drop… it’s not like I’m not trying. It’s not like I’m not looking.

“You get to a point where you think, is this going to be long-term? Am I ever going to be good enough for this?”

He eventually found work at the Electoral Commission through a connection from Youth Inspire, a local charity.

Youth Inspire’s chief executive, Zainab Ali, told Stuff that youth job support agencies across the motu were “overwhelmed,” with youth unemployment at “crisis levels”.

Professor Rod McNaughton, from the University of Auckland Business School, said there was a “narrowing of the pathways through which young people gain experience and become productive workers”.

“Entry-level jobs aren’t really entry level any more. Even roles that were once considered entry level now require certifications or previous experience. These requirements can be overwhelming for rangatahi who haven’t yet had the chance to build those skills.”

Young people from lower socioecomic backgrounds were facing additional challenges, Ali said.

“Barriers tend to be larger and more complex. Challenges with regular school attendance and engagement, fewer networks, financial pressure, and limited access to transport or tech all make the job-hunting process harder.”

AI is causing entry positions for young people to shrink or disappear altogether, research shows.

Professor Rod McNaughton, University of Auckland Business School, said such roles are being automated and reorganised.

Economist Brad Olsen said young people are “bearing the brunt of the labour market downturn”.

“What we’re seeing is not just a problem of fewer jobs, but a narrowing of the pathways through which young people gain experience and become productive workers.”

“Employers are increasingly expecting people to arrive work-ready and be able to exercise more mature judgement.

“That creates a paradox where unemployment is high, but many employers still say they cannot find people with the capabilities they need, including the ability to work effectively with AI and adapt to change.”

Brad Olsen, chief executive of economics consultancy Infometrics, said young people are “bearing the brunt of the labour market downturn”.

“The Iran war means businesses are more cautious about hiring, which we think will mean job ads growth is more restrained, meaning a continued tough level of competition for young people to try to get work.”