Chronology for 1938-1971
Assimilating into universal welfare
Labour’s policies were underpinned by a principle of universality and a vision of the nation as a classless community. Rich, middle-class and poor were linked by the same national system of state support and social services; superannuation, however small, was to be available to every aged person who was not already on another benefit and was an important symbol of citizenship. The ‘system as a whole was removed from ‘the taint of charity’ and became a source of national pride’.[i] go to footnote
This was a period of great demographic change for iwi Māori with the mass migration of its rural population to the cities of New Zealand. The need for workers in essential industries and the post-war labour boom provided rangatahi and whānau Māori with ample employment, 'incomes that were almost equal to those of Pākehā, and access to family welfare benefits that boosted the incomes of large families by around 50 percent.'[ii] go to footnote However, the financial rewards were offset by one or both parents working long hours to cover the costs of city living and it exposed Māori to discrimination. The Department of Māori Affairs played a welfare role in the lives of whānau Māori during this period, with a policy of integrating Māori into the social fabric of ‘mainstream’ New Zealand society. Through housing allocation policies attempts were made to pepper pot Māori in Pākehā suburban streets.[iii] go to footnote Young Māori women who moved to the cities for essential industry work or single rangatahi simply moving to the city for work opportunities were directed into hostels.
Before the 1950s, child welfare agencies endeavoured to keep Māori children with their families or in their own tribal area.[iv] go to footnote In the 1950s, Māori became a disproportionate minority in all areas of child welfare work with a steady growth in Māori juvenile delinquency with recorded Māori offending at three or four times the rate of Pākehā, particularly in the 15–20 age.[v] go to footnote
Chronology events
Displaying 191 - 200 of 270 events.
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Placement targets for the long-term unemployed
The New Zealand Employment Service was required to place 40,000 job seekers registered for 26 weeks or more, within its overall target of 90,000 placements. The Service was also required to improve its placement results for women, Māori, Pacific Islanders …
Date: 1990 Period: 1990-current -
Fourth National Government welfare reforms
The National Government cut welfare benefits and removed the universal family benefit entirely with Ruth Richardson’s ‘mother of all budgets’.[i] Jenny Shipley criticised welfare system dependency and benefits as a poverty trap and pushed a modest ‘safety …
Date: 1991 Period: 1990-current -
Ka Awatea report
Winston Peters, National MP, releases Ka Awatea which recommended the abolition of the Iwi Transition Agency and Manatū Māori, replacing them with a new Ministry of Māori Development, Te Puni Kōkiri (TPK).[i] This new agency was to have a strong regional p…
Date: 1991 Period: 1990-current -
NZ Census of Population and Dwellings includes ‘Iwi’
The first national census since 1901 to include iwi.[i]
Date: 1991 Period: 1990-current -
Te Whānau o Waipareira Trust
The Trust moved from providing services based on ‘goodwill and voluntary labour of [the] Māori community’ to funded services under the name Te Whānau o Waipareira Social Services. This development arose from a two-year contract with DSW to provide a homebu…
Date: 1991 Period: 1990-current -
DSW split into three business units
Government welfare reforms separated the Department of Social Welfare into three standalone units. The New Zealand Community Funding Agency was established as one of the key ‘operating businesses’ of the Department of Social Welfare and helped ensure that…
Date: 1992 Period: 1990-current -
Establishment of Te Puni Kōkiri
Te Puni Kōkiri, Ministry of Māori Development, replaced Manatū Māori as well as the Iwi Transition Agency. Both agencies had replaced the Department of Māori Affairs. Part of the role of the new Ministry was to monitor other government departments for deli…
Date: 1992 Period: 1990-current -
Additional social welfare reforms
Release of DSW’s Briefing to the Incoming Minister, published in 1993, raised concerns about increasing number of sole parents, and long-term unemployment following the passage of Employment Contracts Act. The fourth National Government's Prime Ministerial…
Date: 1993 Period: 1990-current -
From Welfare to Well-Being
Department of Social Welfare, From Welfare to Well-Being (Wellington: Department of Social Welfare, 1994) introduced the idea of reciprocal obligations.[i] Introduction of case managers to address barriers individuals face returning to work. Sole Parent …
Date: 1994 Period: 1990-current -
Māori Development Conference - Hui Whakapumau
A two-day meeting of Māori who gathered to review the Decade of Māori Development 1984–94, and to focus on issues which needed to be addressed if ‘self-determination and social justice were to prevail’. Hui called for a shift in focus from iwi development …
Date: 1994 Period: 1990-current
Footnotes
- [i] go to main content Tim Garlick, Social Developments: An organizational history of the Ministry of Social Development and its predecessors, 1860-2011, Steele Roberts Aotearoa, Wellington, 2012, p.70.
- [ii] go to main content Melissa Matutina Williams, Panguru and the City, Bridget Williams Books, Wellington, 2010, p. 195.
- [iii] go to main content Urbanisation – Te Ara Encyclopedia of New Zealand
- [iv] go to main content Bronwyn Dalley, Family Matters, Wellington, 1998, p. 6.
- [v] go to main content Dalley, 1998, p. 192.