The statistic that should send a chill through every one of us was the one you might have seen over the weekend from a construction company.

They hired 52 people, but lost 54 to poaching.

It's that fundamentally destructive aspect of the economy that has seen us almost certainly in a recession in the first half of this year, and quite possibly another one in the latter part of this year and into next.

The economy is broken, it can't function without enough people and we don’t have enough people.

You can't hire 52 and lose 54 without serious consequences for what you do.

The 54 will have got pay rises not because they're doing anything different or producing anything more but merely because the people who hired them were desperate.

Meantime, Christopher Luxon was in the Bay of Plenty looking at one of the country's biggest kiwifruit operations. This is an industry that is one of the great success stories of this nation and yet is in the middle of a crisis over quality, at least in part, because of a labour shortage.

Quality for a country like this is everything, we don’t do quantity we do quality. It's suggested the fruit was picked wet and rough.

Why? Because of the labour shortage.

The answer? It's more workers

Where from? The Pacific.

It's not hard; Luxon promised an expansion of the RSE scheme immediately. But he shouldn’t have to make such a promise because it should be already in place, and it should already be in place because it’s obvious.

The Government will tell you they have already expanded the RSE scheme but here is the simple truth - if you still have a problem, it doesn’t matter what you have done because you haven't solved the problem.

The policies of this Government around labour and immigration are literally destroying the economy and the country.

We have aged care facilities closing because they can't get nurses, we have one of our major exporters with a reputational crisis because they can’t get labour and we have construction workers going round in circles from site to site because they can't get new workers.

Put simply, it is the economics of idiots.

The statistic that should send a chill through every one of us was the one you might have seen over the weekend from a construction company.
They hired 52 people, but lost 54 to poaching.
It's that fundamentally destructive aspect of the economy that has seen us almost certainly in a recession in the first half of this year, and quite possibly another one in the latter part of this year and into next.
The economy is broken, it can't function without enough people and we don’t have enough people.
You can't hire 52 and lose 54 without serious consequences for what you do.
The 54 will have got pay rises not because they're doing anything different or producing anything more but merely because the people who hired them were desperate.
Meantime, Christopher Luxon was in the Bay of Plenty looking at one of the country's biggest kiwifruit operations. This is an industry that is one of the great success stories of this nation and yet is in the middle of a crisis over quality, at least in part, because of a labour shortage.
Quality for a country like this is everything, we don’t do quantity we do quality. It's suggested the fruit was picked wet and rough.
Why? Because of the labour shortage.
The answer? It's more workers
Where from? The Pacific.
It's not hard; Luxon promised an expansion of the RSE scheme immediately. But he shouldn’t have to make such a promise because it should be already in place, and it should already be in place because it’s obvious.
The Government will tell you they have already expanded the RSE scheme but here is the simple truth - if you still have a problem, it doesn’t matter what you have done because you haven't solved the problem.
The policies of this Government around labour and immigration are literally destroying the economy and the country.
We have aged care facilities closing because they can't get nurses, we have one of our major exporters with a reputational crisis because they can’t get labour and we have construction workers going round in circles from site to site because they can't get new workers.
Put simply, it is the economics of idiots.

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The Mike Hosking Breakfast always cuts through and delivers the best daily on Newstalk ZB.

Open your mind to the world with New Zealand’s number one breakfast radio show. Without question, as New Zealand’s number one talk host, Mike Hosking sets the day’s agenda. The sharpest voice and mind in the business, Mike drives strong opinion, delivers the best talent, and always leaves you wanting more. The Mike Hosking Breakfast always cuts through and delivers the best daily on Newstalk ZB.

Open your mind to the world with New Zealand’s number one breakfast radio show.Without question, as New Zealand’s number one talk host, Mike Hosking sets the day’s agenda.The sharpest voice and mind in the business, Mike drives strong opinion,...