The mental health of the working-age population is becoming a key issue in labour market and social policies in many OECD countries. It is an issue that has been neglected for too long despite the high and growing cost of poor mental health to people and society. Now, however, OECD governments increasingly recognise that policy has a major role to play in improving the employment opportunities for people with mental health conditions. Workplace and employment policies need a stronger focus on worker’s mental health, and health systems a stronger focus on peoples’ working lives.

The principle of indigeneity “goes beyond cultural recognition to claim a special place for indigenous people in the life of the nation. It does not mean other cultures should not also be duly recognised …, but it does acknowledge a unique position for indigenous peoples” (Durie, 2004, p. 8). Māori people are tāngata whenua (people born of the land), and as such have a different standing than other ethnic groups in Aotearoa/New Zealand. Māori people also have a Treaty relationship with the Government, which has responsibilities towards Māori people, including acknowledgement of their special status as tāngata whenua. Both the principle of indigeneity and the Treaty have been recognised in law, e.g. Māori Language Act of 1991 and Treaty of Waitangi Act of 1975 (Durie, 2002[1]).

Throughout OECD countries, including New Zealand, there is growing recognition that mental health is a major issue in social and labour market policy. Mental health problems exact a large cost on the people concerned, on employers, and on the economy at large, affecting well-being and employment, and causing substantial productivity losses.

Poor mental health costs the New Zealand economy some 4-5% of GDP every year through lost labour productivity, increased health care expenditure and social spending on people temporarily or permanently out of work. It is also costly in terms of individual wellbeing as, at any given moment, one in five New Zealanders have a mental health condition. The prevalence of mental health conditions in New Zealand is higher for women than for men, higher for young people than for those of working age, and highest for those with low educational attainment and for Māori and Pacific populations.

This chapter highlights the challenges New Zealand faces in the area of mental health and work. It offers an overview of the labour market outcomes of people with mental health conditions in New Zealand compared with other OECD countries, and looks at their economic well-being. The chapter also examines differences in outcomes by ethnicity and discusses the definition of mental health and the data sources used in this report.

This chapter evaluates policies and programmes aimed at strengthening the employment focus of the mental health system. The analysis examines how New Zealand’s health system promotes wellbeing and supports mental health conditions when they arise, ensuring that appropriate and timely access to adequate services which recognise the benefits of meaningful work for people experiencing mental health conditions are available. It considers how the system provides training and support to health practitioners, particularly in primary care; and the tools and incentives available to address work and sickness issues. The analysis uses the 2015 OECD Recommendation of the Council on Integrated Mental Health, Skills and Work Policy as the primary benchmark for informing best practice policies in this field.

This chapter evaluates policies and programmes aimed at promoting the mental health of New Zealand’s children and youth. The analysis looks at five questions in particular: How does New Zealand’s education system promote mental wellbeing and psychological resilience? In what ways do schools intervene when warning signs emerge? What mental health services may young people access through the health care and community system? How do schools and universities stem disengagement and attrition from the education system? What policies and programmes are in place to help vulnerable young people transition into further education or into employment? The analysis uses the OECD’s (2015) Council Recommendation on Integrated Mental Health, Skills and Work Policy as the primary benchmark for best practices in this field.

This chapter reviews policies, programmes and activities of key stakeholders involved in promoting mental wellbeing within New Zealand’s workplaces and retaining workers who experience mental health problems. The analysis looks, in particular, at the common ways in which employers manage mental health risks and address concerns when they emerge; how public campaigns combat stigma, discrimination and misconceptions surrounding mental health; how New Zealand helps workers with mental health problems reintegrate into the labour market; and how sickness leave policies help or hinder them. Throughout this chapter, the analysis draws upon the OECD Council Recommendation on Integrated Mental Health, Skills and Work Policy of 2015 as the primary benchmark for best practices in this field.

This chapter evaluates policies and programmes aimed at improving the responsiveness of New Zealand’s social protection system and employment services to people with mental health conditions. It considers how this system ensures secure income in periods of inactivity, how it recognises and responds to people with mental health conditions and how the system helps people out of work to return to the labour market. The analysis uses the OECD's (2015) Council Recommendation on Integrated Mental Health, Skills and Work Policy as the primary benchmark for informing best practice policies in this field.