Social Development Minister Louise Upston announced the new mandatory “Kōrero Mahi – Let's Talk Work” sessions at a jobs fair in Porirua on Thursday.
Upston said people applying for Jobseeker Support must now meet with the Ministry of Social Development within a fortnight to decide next steps.
Those who did not attend without “good and sufficient reason” could face sanctions, she said.
“When they are ready to work, they can be helped to apply for a job. If they need further education or training, they can be referred to a program that can help.
“These mandatory employment seminars will ensure that all new Job Seeker beneficiaries receive the support they need and understand what is expected of them.”
Upston said early intervention was necessary because while almost 190,000 people were receiving job seeker support, only 53,000 of them had case managers at any time.
“This new initiative follows steps we have already taken to make the social security system more proactive, including our expectations on the application of benefit sanctions and new employment checks for job seekers after six months.”
The coalition government has set the target that 50,000 fewer people will use job seeker support by 2030.
“We are not willing to sit back and let benefit dependency get worse, which is why we are intervening early to get job seekers on the path to work,” Upston said.