Posts by admin
How to stop wasting money on short-term hires
When it comes to filling short-term roles, most companies move fast. That’s the point. A project’s picked up speed, someone’s called in sick, or you’ve got a backlog to smash through. But in the rush, we’ve seen even the most experienced teams waste money without realising it. Here are three places we regularly see good companies lose money, and what you can do to avoid it. Hiring too late - waiting until the pressure is on before asking for help. We get it. No one wants to overhire. But waiting until the job is on fire means less choice, less [...]
Key Skills attending RCSA Recruitment and Staffing Summit
This July, Josh from Key Skills will head to the Beehive to represent our team at the inaugural RCSA Recruitment & Staffing Summit. It’s a chance to participate in important conversations about the future of work and ensure the voice of labour hire is heard where it counts. As an active Recruitment, Consulting & Staffing Association (RCSA) member, we take our role in these conversations seriously. With big changes to the Employment Relations Act (ERA) on the table, it’s important for the people making the rules to hear from those who see how it plays out in real workplaces. Josh brings [...]
Key Skills is now an Amotai registered supplier
Key Skills is proud to be officially registered with Amotai, the national intermediary that connects Māori and Pasifika owned businesses with procurement opportunities across Aotearoa. This registration formally recognises us as a business that is at least 50% Māori-owned. It places us in a growing national network of high-performing, kaupapa-driven suppliers, deeply connected to their communities. What this means Being Amotai registered means we’re now eligible to be matched with buyers from across government, iwi, trusts, and major corporates. These are organisations committed to supplier diversity and to building stronger futures by working with businesses like ours. But for us, [...]
Budget 2025 – not bad, not great, just… there
The Government’s 2025 Budget landed with all the fizz of a lukewarm cuppa. Finance Minister Nicola Willis called it a “careful balance,” and to be fair, that’s accurate. It doesn’t blow anything up, but it doesn’t spark much confidence either. For those of us working in construction, engineering, manufacturing, and labour hire, the good news is… well, there’s not a lot of bad news. But is there much here to help you move forward right now? Not really. What’s in the pot? Investment Boost – Businesses can now deduct an extra 20% on new asset purchases, on top of standard [...]
50-70 void hazards a week. One bloke is trying to fix it.
When a young apprentice fell through an unprotected void and was left paralysed, Kevin Jury was gutted, especially because he’d already quoted for the job. The builder said no at the time. After the accident, they asked Kevin to install his Voideck system across the site immediately. That moment changed everything. Kevin developed Voideck, an engineered platform designed to cover internal voids during construction. Originally created for Aussie sites where unprotected voids can shut down a site, Voideck is lightweight, adjustable, and certified. It doesn’t block access like scaffolding, and it’s shaped to fit even the trickiest gaps. Now Kevin’s [...]
Wellington’s wild job market – what’s really going on?
Let’s not sugarcoat it. Wellington’s job market is rough right now. If you’ve been job hunting recently, you probably don’t need another news story to confirm what you already know. Roles are scarce, competition is fierce, and even the most experienced professionals struggle to get a foot in the door. One candidate in The Post compared it to the Hunger Games on steroids. Honestly, fair. From our desk at Key Skills, we’re seeing a similar thing in construction, manufacturing, and engineering. SEEK says job ads in Wellington are flatlining while regions like Otago and Manawatū are seeing growth. MBIE’s figures [...]
