Unit Manager Labour Market Statistics | Kaiwhakahaere Wāhanga

Salary: $138,071 to $162,436 + kiwisaver

Unit Manager - Labour Market Statistics | Kaiwhakahaere Wāhanga - Ngā Tauanga Mākete Mahi

The role | Te tūnga

Unit Manager - Labour Market Statistics - Fixed term until 30 June 2027

You'll lead a team of experts focused on Labour Market Statistics, whose work contextualises key labour market findings within broader economic trends, supporting economists, banks, and other data users across the New Zealand and International data systems. Working closely with your Statistical Production Lead, you'll ensure the successful delivery of the Household Labour Force Survey (HLFS), Quarterly Employment Survey (QES) and Linked Employer-Employee admin data (LEED) data releases.

In addition to the operational management of the unit, you will also ensure that the team has a strong customer focus and service delivery. You will play a critical role in fostering a team culture of operational excellence and continuous improvement

Wellington preferred but Christchurch and Auckland considered.

What you bring | Nōu te rourou

You are a strong and experienced people leader who empowers technical experts to thrive, fosters a high-performing and inclusive team culture, and creates an environment where people can grow, innovate, and deliver their best work.

• Proven experience leading through others and empowering technical leaders and subject matter experts to thrive.

• A demonstrated commitment to upholding Te Tiriti o Waitangi and applying its principles in leadership, decision-making, and workplace practice

• Experience leading teams in a fast-paced environment, including the successful delivery and continuous improvement of regular and high-profile statistical releases.

• Strong customer and stakeholder focus, ensuring partner and user needs are embedded into the team's priorities, products, and services.

• A collaborative leadership style, actively contributing to the wider leadership of the branch and the Insights & Statistics Group,

• A commitment to continuous improvement, innovation, learning, and capability development within teams.

• Demonstrated leadership in fostering diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.

• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to translate complex information into actionable insights.

• Knowledge of official statistics, statistical production environments, and data dissemination processes.

• Desirable: knowledge of economics, labour market statistics, or related policy domains, with an understanding of how data and insights support evidence-based decision-making.

• We highly value demonstrated competency in mātauranga Māori, tikanga and Te Tiriti o Waitangi application in a workplace setting. To support this work, proficiency in te reo Māori, or a strong commitment to developing te reo Māori capability is welcomed.

• We are seeking candidates with a demonstrated commitment to continuous learning and applying cultural capability in their practice.

We recognise that valuable skills can come from both paid and unpaid work. You might have gained experience in education, hospitality, technology, public service, the marae, or the arts. You might have experience from community involvement, volunteering, or whānau responsibilities. We welcome and value all forms of transferable skills. Please bring your full unique self to your application.

For all our roles, we’re looking for people who:

• Act with integrity, take responsibility, and do what’s right even when it’s hard.

• Understand the ‘why’ behind their work and focus on delivering real value.

• Stay curious and open to learning, seeing challenges as chances to grow.

• Build respectful and inclusive relationships, grounded in care for others.

• Work collaboratively across boundaries and contribute to collective outcomes.

We don’t expect you to know everything. What matters is your genuine interest, commitment, and readiness to grow with us. Tell us about yourself in your cover letter, what attracted you to this role, and what you would bring to Stats NZ.

About Us | Ko mātou

Stats NZ Tatauranga Aotearoa is the National Statistics Office, leading the way in data and insights. While this is our focus, it’s our people who are central to everything we do. We value diverse perspectives and experiences, recognising that our work is strengthened by the people behind it.

The data and insights we produce help shape decisions across government, communities, and businesses, and plays an important role in telling the story of Aotearoa New Zealand. Our mahi supports informed decision making at both national and local levels, helping improve outcomes for people, the economy, and the environment.

We’re proud of the role we play in guiding and strengthening the data system, with a goal of delivering high quality data with equitable access for all.

Curious about what it's really like to work here?
Before applying, we encourage you to watch our Life at Stats NZ video. It offers a glimpse into who we are, what we value, and the diverse perspectives and experiences that make Stats NZ a great place to work.

What’s in it for you? | Ngā hua ka riro ki a koe

Take a look at our Stats NZ careers site to learn more about our organisational values: He pēwhea ā tātou tikanga mahi | The way we work.

Some key benefits include:

• 37.5 hours work week.

• 15 days sick leave allowance (to be used for yourself or people under your care).

• 3 extra days off (taken during end-of-year office closure).

• Annual flu vaccines.

• Funded counselling and coaching through our Employee Assistance Programme (EAP).

• Corporate rates for a variety of services and products.

• Study assistance programmes.

• Rōpū Waiata – weekly cross agency connection.

• An active social club in each office.

Starting salary for this position: $138,071 to $162,436 + kiwisaver

How to apply | Me pēhea te tuku tono

Sound like you? Click ’Apply now’ to be redirected to the application page on our careers site. The position description is located on the right-hand side of the page.

Our process is to screen applications as we receive them, so we move to interview stage quickly. You may be asked to complete a pre-interview screen via phone or video.

Please let us know in your application if we need to make any specific accommodations during our process.

Please reach out to Recruitment@stats.govt.nz if you have any pātai / questions.

Note to recruitment agencies: unsolicited CVs will not be accepted.