Ministry of Regulation staffers earn an average of $150k a year
Wednesday, 21 August 2024
The average salary for staff in David Seymour's new Ministry for Regulation is more than $150,000.
The Wellington agency is more than four times the size of the Productivity Commission it replaced, hiring 91 staff.
That’s despite ACT, and coalition partner National, campaigning to reduce the public sector wage bill, make 15,000 public servants redundant and slash “wasteful spending” in the sector.
The anti-red tape ministry was a flagship policy for Seymour at last year’s election and was established in March.
It is tasked with removing regulation and enabling “a culture shift across government to move the focus away from Wellington”, Seymour has said.
Responding to written questions from Green Party MP Francisco Hernandez, Seymour confirmed the median and mean salary of fixed-term and permanent Ministry employees is $154,500 and $152,034.
That makes the median ministry salary 82% higher than that of the average public servant, which is $84,000.
Seymour also confirmed the permanent structure will have 91 employees.
When it ceased operations at the end of February, 21 Productivity Commission workers lost their jobs. They received a total of $339,300 in redundancy payments.
The new ministry has three deputy chief executives earning up to $350,000. Five staff are on between $196,000 and $257,000 a year.
Seven managers, a head of ministerial services and a “head of people and operations” will be paid up to $224,313.
The salary of chief executive Gráinne Moss was not disclosed.
Hernandez said New Zealand was already recognised as one of the easiest countries in which to do business and the ministry would duplicate work already done by other parts of the public service and Parliamentary offices.
“There are two things that are galling. The Government has attacked the public service, but essentially exempted their own pet ministries.”
“They've cut front line public services, but they're investing in this, and by definition it is not a frontline public service. It's just really galling when you see the cuts to Oranga Tamariki (OT) and the front line roles there.
“And when you think of cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency or to the Ministry for the Environment, and then you see huge mega-ministry, which was created as an ideological project. It's crazy.”
There have been mass job cuts across the public sector, as ministries, agencies and departments act on a Government directive to shave spending to pay for tax cuts.
As of the end of July, nearly 6000 jobs have been cut, or are slated for the axe.
OT has cut more than 400 jobs. The EPA has proposed slashing its workforce by 16%, or 42 jobs. And at MFE more than 300 jobs are set to go.
Last week, The Post revealed the Government is hiring spin doctors for its new agencies on six-figure salaries, despite having ordered a purge on public service jobs.
The Ministry for Regulation was recruiting for a “principal adviser, engagement and communications”, paid up to $168,000 a year to join a team of five communications staff ‒ three of whom are contractors.
Seymour’s office did not respond to questions from The Post on Tuesday.