Infrastructure New Zealand survey flags staff losses

Infrastructure New Zealand's latest industry survey found many respondents had lost workers overseas and cut staff numbers, raising concern about the sector's ability to deliver future projects.

The Pulse survey found 48% of respondents had lost staff overseas in the past year, while 44% said their organisations had reduced staff numbers over the same period. It also found 91% believed the election was creating uncertainty for infrastructure investment decisions.

Financial conditions were also weak. Just over half of respondents, or 52%, expected the next 12 months to be financially harder than the previous year, while only 7% expected conditions to improve.

The results point to concern not only about current trading conditions, but also about whether the sector will have enough people to deliver a larger pipeline of work. When asked about New Zealand's preparedness to manage an increase in infrastructure investment, 56% said the country was ill-prepared if investment rose within the next 12 months.

Nick Leggett, Chief Executive of Infrastructure New Zealand, said the results showed the scale of the challenge facing the sector.

"New Zealand has an enormous amount of infrastructure to build and look after. But the industry is telling us that they're uncertain about the future, so they're struggling to keep the people they need to get on with that work," Leggett said.

Investment pipeline

The findings suggest uncertainty about future work is weighing on hiring and retention across the industry. Respondents included consultants, contractors, local government, asset owners, and infrastructure providers.

Leggett said the survey indicated delays could worsen delivery problems rather than ease them.

"That's a particularly concerning finding," Leggett said.

"It suggests that waiting may make our infrastructure challenge harder, not easier," he said.

He also drew a distinction between immediate financial pressure and longer-term visibility of projects.

"The biggest concern isn't simply cashflow. It's whether there will be a credible pipeline of work over the next year and beyond," Leggett said.

"The industry needs visibility of what's coming, when it will be funded, and when it will be delivered."

Political consensus

The survey also found strong support for cross-party backing of major infrastructure priorities, with 93% of respondents saying such agreement was extremely or very important.

That result aligns with Infrastructure New Zealand's call for a 12-year funded and sequenced programme of work, which it says would give the sector greater certainty over future investment and delivery.

The organisation's membership includes more than 150 groups across central and local government, consulting, contracting, finance, utilities, and academia. Those organisations collectively employ about 150,000 people in infrastructure-related roles.

The Pulse surveyed 290 infrastructure sector participants in July. Respondents were self-selected, with consultants and larger organisations strongly represented. The findings were described as a measure of industry sentiment rather than a statistically representative view of the whole sector.