Hundreds more staff needed for Christchurch’s new stadium

Wednesday, 18 June 2025

Venues Ōtautahi is planning to more than double its casual workforce ahead of the opening of the new Christchurch stadium in April.

Recruitment is about to begin for hundreds of casual staff who will be needed to help staff Christchurch’s new stadium.

Venues Ōtautahi, operator of the One New Zealand stadium at Te Kaha, has announced it will need to more than double its usual workforce of 450 casual staff.

Chief executive Caroline Harvie-Teare said they would likely need 1000 casual event staff when the stadium opened.

Recruitment for casual workers is currently underway with applications closing on June 25 with further recruitment rounds planned for September and February.

Harvie-Teare said staff would not be dedicated to the stadium but would work across all Venues Ōtautahi locations including the Town Hall, Wolfbrook Arena, Hagley Oval, the Air Force Museum and Apollo Projects Stadium.

Jobs include waiting roles, bar service, ticket scanning, assisting with seating and providing customer service, assisting in cooking hot food, event and venue setup and brewing barista coffees.

Venues Ōtautahi general manager of people Rachel Hewett said candidates would not be expected to have all the necessary skills but would be trained. “We employ a lot of young people. These roles are great to build confidence and provide a springboard into a thriving career in events.”

Hundreds of casual staff will be needed to help staff the new stadium.

In its last recruitment round in December-February, the organisation hired 40-50 people from 460 applicants.

Recruitment for permanent positions would also continue over the next year for roles in operations and management, culinary services, technical services and assets and facilities.