Across New Zealand's critical industries, workforce demand is growing faster than workforce supply. As experienced workers retire and competition for skilled people intensifies, the gap continues to widen. Yet youth unemployment is also rising. These two trends should not be happening at the same time. They reveal a disconnect between young people seeking opportunities and industries struggling to find talent.
This dashboard explores the scale of that challenge, where it exists, and why action is needed now to attract more New Zealanders into the careers that keep the country running.
Many of the roles featured on workin appear on official government shortage lists. These occupations have been identified as areas where demand exceeds domestic supply and where employers are struggling to find enough workers.
The industries featured on workin provide services and infrastructure essential to the functioning of the country. Many are recognised as lifeline utilities, critical infrastructure, or sectors facing significant workforce shortages.
The workforce projections compare expected demand with expected supply through to 2036. While projections are estimates, the trend is clear: demand is expected to outpace supply across many critical industries.
The same gap, broken down by industry and added up cumulatively to 2036. Tap any bar to see the roles inside that industry. Some industries face a far deeper cumulative gap than others.
Many industries rely on the same trades, technical skills and practical capabilities. This means workforce shortages are shared challenges rather than isolated ones — making the need to grow the overall talent pipeline even more important.
The data on this page points to a simple challenge: critical industries need more people, while many people don't know these careers exist.
workin helps close that gap. By organising career pathways around industries rather than job titles, workin helps people discover opportunities they may never have considered — while helping the industries that keep New Zealand running build their future workforce.
| Industry | Critical status | Roles | On shortage lists | Gap to 2036 | workin coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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If you lead or represent an industry, training provider or workforce body, let's talk about growing your future workforce together.
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