Pitched as making it cheaper and less risky for small businesses to hire, especially young and inexperienced workers, with ACT arguing mandated minimum wage rises have outpaced productivity.

📋 ACT: Backing Small Business, September 2026 →

What it does

• Freezes the adult minimum wage for three years. RNZ reported the adult rate is $23.95 an hour.
• Sets a training wage at 60 percent of the adult minimum wage for workers under 20, for their first 12 months with any employer. RNZ reported that works out at $14.37 and would replace the current starting-out wage of $19.16 (80 percent), with existing employment protections still applying.
• Allows protected exit negotiations, so an employer and employee can discuss ending a job by mutual agreement without the conversation itself triggering a personal grievance.
• Requires personal grievance proceedings to be lodged within three months of the grievance being raised, instead of up to three years.
• Ends compulsory employer collection of union fees, and changes tax rules so businesses can deduct software and digital investment.
• Announced on 15 September 2026 by small business spokesperson Laura McClure.

The debate

McClure said laws designed to lift pay and conditions "haven't done the job" and that "truly higher wages require businesses that can grow". David Seymour said there was "no question" that creating another opportunity for young people not in work or study would mean more people working. The Greens take the opposite approach and would abolish the training wage altogether, with co-leader Chlöe Swarbrick saying low pay leaves apprentices worried about making ends meet. Labour leader Chris Hipkins said the training wage was not something he had looked at and he wanted to review the evidence on its employment impact.