New Zealand is at a crossroads as a talent exodus and ongoing productivity struggles threaten its economic recovery, according to the Robert Walters 2025 Salary Survey. The survey reveals that 67% of Kiwi employees are considering leaving their current roles, with 42% of them targeting Australia as their next destination.
Talent Moving Abroad
Australia’s growing appeal is pulling workers from New Zealand in search of better pay and career growth, while just 2% of Australians express interest in moving to New Zealand. Robert Walters ANZ CEO Shay Peters points to a troubling shift in sentiment. “New Zealand has become, concerningly for me, un-aspirational,” he said. “Despite Australia going through economic challenges of their own… the general feel on the ground in Australia is more aspirational, and that’s something that we have to capture again in New Zealand.”
Employers Struggle to Keep Up
New Zealand employers appear unprepared to address the outflow of talent. Only 62% plan to increase salaries in 2025, a sharp decline from previous years. Compounding the issue is a mismatch between employer and employee expectations—just 57% of employees anticipate a pay raise, reflecting a growing pessimism in the labour market.
The pressure is even greater in industries like technology and legal. Some 70% of employers in these sectors expect staff relocations within the next year, while 54% of employees believe they are underpaid.
Legal sector challenges, including delays in sponsorship for international lawyers, are exacerbating retention issues. “We’re hearing that more firms are taking nine months to a year to actually get lawyers on the ground… That’s just not feasible,” said Rosamund More, senior manager for legal at Robert Walters.
The Productivity Problem
Economist Cameron Bagrie warns that New Zealand’s sluggish productivity growth is a central factor in the talent exodus. Over the past decade, productivity growth has dropped from 1.4% annually to just 0.2%.
“If productivity is basically zippo, your wages only move up in line with inflation. Which gives you one hell of an economic incentive to go apply your trade overseas,” Bagrie said. He also criticised New Zealand’s mismanagement of capital productivity, describing it as a “30-year failure” in effectively using and maintaining resources like buildings and machinery.
Bagrie cautioned that the current economic downturn, driven by cost-cutting and lack of long-term planning, risks leaving New Zealand unprepared for future challenges.
Calls for Change
Experts and industry leaders are urging reforms to reverse the talent drain. Stuart Nash, commercial director at Robert Walters and a former Labour Cabinet Minister, emphasised the need for practical immigration policies and capital investment incentives. He criticised leadership in professional sectors for clinging to outdated norms.
“With all due respect to my demographic, they are run by old white guys who want to protect the status quo, which is no longer applicable or realistic in the 21st century,” Nash said.
For Peters, the solution lies in workplace innovation and cultural disruption. Flexible and hybrid working arrangements, for example, are increasingly favoured by employees, yet underutilised by many employers.
“We’ve got to start challenging people again right from the outset through education, through sports. That has been how we’ve learned resilience in New Zealand society before,” Peters said.
“New Zealand has to retain its talent… and that is my single largest concern from that survey—most particularly to Australia, because what that illustrates is they’re not necessarily looking to go on an OE and return.”as Peters aptly summarised.