Work and Income is getting 300 extra staff to help tackle unemployment that has soared to its highest level in four years.
The number of people on the unemployment benefit has risen to 55,272. The last time the figures exceeded 50,000 was July 2005.
The number of people receiving benefits overall is 315,665.
Social Development Minister Paula Bennett announced the July benefit statistics at the Waitakere Work and Income Centre in west Auckland on Friday.
Ms Bennett says the Government will invest more than $17 million to fund an additional 303 Work and Income frontline staff. Of those, 104 staff have already been recruited to work in the Auckland region.
Ms Bennett says she does not know when the number of people on the unemployment benefit will peak, but insists it is not all doom and gloom in the workforce.
Public Service Association national secretary Brenda Pilott there was no way the existing number of staff could have coped with the rising number of unemployed people, and the union is pleased the Government has recognised more resources are needed.
Unemployment predicted to peak next year
Treasury is predicting surging unemployment will peak by September next year, a leading official says.
The Household Labour Force Survey released by Statistics New Zealand on Thursday showed number of people officially unemployed hit a 10-year high of 138,000 at the end of June.
The unemployment rate as a percentage of the workforce jumped from 5% to 6%, the largest quarterly increase for 21 years.
Treasury deputy secretary Peter Bushnell says the important thing is getting the economy growing in a durable way.
He says fiscal stimulus at best gives a "short run kick" and with Government debt rising Treasury would be concerned that overseas investors may not be all that sympathetic to continuing to lend to New Zealand.
Treasury expects the economy to start picking up towards the end of this year, he says, and unemployment to peak in the following September quarter.
Labour, Greens urge job creation
The Labour Party says the increase in the unemployment rate shows the Government is failing to take the sharp edges off the recession.
Labour's Social Development spokesperson Annette King says the Government hasn't had the sense of urgency about unemployment it should have.
She says Australia, which has a lower unemployment rate than New Zealand, is focussing on how to keep people in work, using training, apprenticeships and stimulus to the economy.
Finance Minister Bill English says unemployment is still forecast to hit 8%, but those in jobs are in a good position because of tax cuts and low interest rates.
He says unemployment is likely to continue rising after the economy starts recovering, so the Government is trying to stimulate job creation.
Prime Minister John Key does not expect unemployment to rise above 8%.
Green Party employment spokesperson Sue Bradford says the Government has underestimated the growth of unemployment and must focus urgently on job creation.
