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The Accident Compensation Corporation (ACC) says it will disestablish 390 roles as part of a cost-saving drive - nearly 10 per cent of its workforce.

Chief executive Megan Main said this afternoon that the proposals had been shared with staff today.

“We’re proposing a reduction of 390 roles, of which 81 are vacant, in areas that sit outside our client-facing teams that work directly with New Zealanders to rehabilitate and care for them,” she said in a statement. “This equates to a proposed 9 per cent reduction of our total workforce.

“We’re also proposing to invest in 65 new roles that support the delivery of our services to New Zealanders, and our board has also endorsed a plan to reinvest some of the proposed savings in approximately 250 additional client-facing roles. The exact nature of these roles is yet to be finalised.”

Main said the proposals supported the Government’s saving priorities and “set up ACC up for the future”.

The Crown agency, which manages injury claims, was not directed by the Government to tighten its belt but decided to pursue savings of around 6.5 per cent.

Main said all of the changes would go through a consultation process and no decisions would be made until feedback was considered. Final decisions on the changes will be made in June.

“We recognise that times of uncertainty and change can be difficult, and we have several support pathways available to our people through our Employee Assistance Programme and wellbeing resources. We’re working as hard as we can to provide certainty for all our people as soon as possible.”

The Public Service Association (PSA) said it was alarmed by the proposals, which included 29 dedicated injury prevention jobs at a time when the number and cost of injuries was rising in New Zealand.

“ACC is a unique, world-leading no-fault compensation scheme, and the envy of many other countries,” said PSA assistant secretary Fleur Fitzsimons.

“It makes no sense to propose these cuts, particularly as our working-age population is increasing.”

“This is just more dumb stuff forced on ACC by the Government’s spending cuts. We will all pay the price for years to come with more accidents, injuries and harm.”

The injury prevention teams were “vital” and worked on prevention of sexual violence and road safety, Fitzsimons said.

“ACC can’t possibly do better with fewer staff, particularly when stress on the organisation is growing. All the evidence points to investment in injury prevention reducing harm and being the best value for money.”

Isaac Davison is an Auckland-based reporter who covers health issues. He joined the Herald in 2008 and has previously covered the environment, politics, and social issues.

This article was originally published on the NZ Herald