An upturn in manufacturing appears to be helping Maori off the dole.
Waatea News reports new benefit figures show the number of people getting an unemployment benefit in April dropped by almost 500, compared with a rise of more than 4000 at the same time last year.
Social Welfare Minister Paula Bennett says the majority of those moving into work are Maori.
Council of Trade Unions economist Bill Rosenberg says manufacturing, agriculture, forestry and fishing sectors are all high employers of Maori, and they are hiring again.
However, he says manufacturing is far from its peak of two or three years ago, so the high rate of Maori unemployment is likely to continue for some time.
