Mega bucks for mega polytech
A ‘‘nimble’’ body set up to run the nation’s 16 polytechnics will pay its seven top staff at least $2.3 million in its first year and has spent $1.3m on consultants in its first six months.
The New Zealand Institute of Skills and Technology (NZIST) has revealed the salaries of its six deputy chief executives – with the new recruits earning between $253,249 and $392,214 each a year.
The new organisation – which has fewer than 20 staff at its Hamilton head office – will pay the six deputies at least $1.6m in total, while chief executive Stephen Town will take home $688,235 – one of the highest public sector salaries in the country.
At least one of NZIST’s deputies will take home $392,214, which – according to the 2019 Public Sector Rich List – is a higher annual salary than the chief executives at the Serious
Fraud Office, New Zealand Blood Service, Maritime New Zealand and six district health boards.
Education Minister Chris Hipkins said the organisation was an ‘‘investment in New Zealand’s future’’, while National’s tertiary education spokesman, Simeon Brown, said it was ‘‘an investment in six people having cushy jobs’’.
NZIST had refused to disclose the salary of the deputies, but released the figures after Stuff complained to the Ombudsman.
The new deputy chief executives (DCE) appointments at NZIST are:
Partnerships and Equity – Ana Morrison, currently executive director for strategic partnerships and Ma¯ori success at Toi Ohomai Institute of Technology.
■ Learner Journey and Experience – Tania Winslade, currently general manager of Ma¯ori outcomes at Auckland Council.
■ Employer Journeys – Warwick
Quinn, currently chief executive of the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation.
Delivery and Academic – Angela Beaton, currently general manager of national women’s health at Auckland District Health Board.
Transformation and Transition
– Merran Davis, currently interim chief executive of Unitec Institute of Technology.
■ Operations – Vaughan Payne, currently chief executive of Waikato Regional Council.
In July, Hipkins said he expected NZIST would be ‘‘nimble’’ and not ‘‘another layer of management’’.
The Crown would spend nearly $121m reorganising the tertiary sector by the end of 2022.
Most of the existing polytechnics have retained their senior management teams, meaning at least 21 people within the sector now have ‘‘chief executive’’ in their job title.
The top NZIST deputy salary is higher than what most polytech chief executives earned last year.
A polytech tutor who spoke to Stuff anonymously said the deputies were ‘‘basically an additional cost’’. He had expected some chief executives from the existing polytechs to be redesignated.
‘‘I’m a bit cynical about the whole thing. We haven’t seen change yet, and we’re yet to see what progress will be made.
‘‘There is a lot of talking but I don’t think any of us believe there will be noticeable change in the next two to three years,’’ he said.
Town, the former chief executive of Auckland Council,
said he and the six deputy chief executives were on three-year, fixedterm contracts.
‘‘Collectively we have a significant amount of work to do . . . to create a cohesive, sustainable vocational education system that delivers for learners and employers.
‘‘NZIST’s DCEs will work collaboratively with the 16 subsidiaries, their almost 8000 staff, and with a combined revenue of just over $1 billion per annum, as the system is transformed.’’
In a statement released last month, Town said the new leadership team brought a ‘‘diverse, multi-faceted set of skills, knowledge and experience’’.
Hipkins used the same description in a statement yesterday.
‘‘I have been advised that the current team offers a diverse, multi-faceted set of skills, knowledge and experience that complements the expertise that already exists.’’
He said the top-level appointments were ‘‘an essential step’’ towards establishing the organisation.
Louis Houlbrooke, of the New Zealand Taxpayers’ Union, said the salaries were a good example of how ‘‘wasteful spending’’ could accumulate at upper and middle-management levels.
‘‘Highly paid chief executives cop a lot of flak for their salaries but the real waste often lies with their numerous deputies, who lack the same level of public scrutiny and accountability,’’ he said.
The new DCEs are expected to take up their roles by early November.