Wellington City Council: Too many staff, time for ‘right-sizing’, new report shows
Tuesday, 25 November 2025
A $435,000 report finding Wellington City Council is carrying 330 excess staff and poorly manages contracts is apparently not a call for cuts.
The council on Tuesday released its Future Fit Pōneke report with chief executive Matt Prosser urging caution, saying it was a “snapshot” that had recommendations at odds with the wishes of the community and decisions previously made by the council. The public sector union has called it flawed and lacking.
Prosser and mayor Andrew Little talked to media after the release and both stressed although the report highlighted excess staff - including up to 117 managers - it hadn’t called for staff cuts.
The report did, however, list the number of potential reductions in various council teams and the millions of dollars that could be saved as a result.
“We're not talking about any job cuts here,” Prosser said. “What we're talking about is very carefully managing vacancies – that's a very different prescription than cutting jobs.”
Fifty-eight positions had already gone that way, he said.
The report suggests reducing “people managers” by between 69 and 117 heads, or 30% to 50%, in the coming one to three years. That, combined with removing duplication and lowering administration costs through automation and digitisation, could save the council between $15m and $37m.
A further $11.8m could be saved by only filling half of vacant positions, which equates to 117 fewer roles again.
Then comes the 48 roles “duplicating work”.
When compared, per 1000 households, with other councils, there appeared to be opportunities to “right-size” as Wellington had 330 fulltime equivalent staff too many. Wellington had 23.3 staff per 1000 people compared to between 17 and 19 in other councils.
It found a further $21m to $42m could be saved with “spend optimisation” - including divesting under-utilised or non-core assets. An unconfirmed amount could be saved through “asset management gains”.
The report faulted the council’s contract management, echoing recent criticism of Wellington Water. It found 80% of contracts were not properly managed through the system.
“Contracts are often rolled over or directly appointed based on past performance, which may miss competitive opportunities that offer better value for money.”
Prosser said it showed there were things the council needed to do better, while Little said the fact most contracts were not properly managed emphasised the point that changed was needed. They couldn’t say how much the council had overpaid as a result.
Duane Leo, from the Public Service Association, labelled the report as “fundamentally flawed” and lacking in depth, rigour “or even a basic understanding of what the council’s role is”.
The report also found:
LIM reports are long and complex, requiring data from 12 different systems.
Central procurement processes are often bypassed, leading to inconsistent practices, duplication, and poor contract governance.
Contracts are often rolled over or directly appointed based on past performance, which may miss competitive opportunities that offer better value for money.
Engagement and consultation processes differ across teams, leading to confusion and duplication.
The rationale for council involvement in the provision of services, particularly where private providers are active (such as EV infrastructure), lacks strategic clarity or clear financial analysis.
There is ambiguity around how the council’s role differs from that of central government for services like city safety, community housing and food insecurity.
There are opportunities to generate more revenue from uncollected debt, commercial partnerships, and charges for services.