NZ needs more unskilled labourers

Unskilled labourers are now in almost as strong demand as skilled workers, as the labour shortage cranks up a notch, says a Government report.

Half of all companies are having trouble finding unskilled workers, and 60 per cent cannot find enough skilled workers, says the Department of Labour report.

With the workforce better educated and more skilled than ever, the number of people with no qualifications or only school qualifications has fallen.

"Their shrinking contribution to the workforce may be permanently pushing up the difficulty of finding unskilled labour relative to skilled labour," the report says.

"Additionally, skill shortages may be forcing firms to promote workers with the right qualifications but without suitable experience."

Worst-hit are large firms. Three-quarters of New Zealand's biggest companies found it hard to find skilled staff in the March quarter, and almost as many had trouble finding unskilled staff.