New Labour Party leader Andrew Little wasted no time yesterday in outlining how the party had to change to attract a wider range of voters.
Labour was consistently criticised during the election campaign for being splintered by factional MPs who could not explain what the party represented.
In a speech yesterday, Mr Little laid down a challenge to all factions of the party.
The Labour Party had a challenge to update its definition of working people in a world where the nature of work itself was challenging.
''Because today, being the party of working people isn't just about being there for New Zealanders who work nine to five on a salary or on a shift for an hourly wage.
''It has to be about being there for all the people who make their living from their own work, who are grafting to improve their lot. People - to use the old phrase - who work for their money instead of having their money work for them.''
Mr Little said when he travelled around the country during the recent elections, people often told him they did not see themselves reflected in what Labour was saying. That meant they did not feel like there was anybody in politics who was looking out for them.
His clear message yesterday was: To people working hard to get a small business off the ground, to people choosing to work on contract, to people who were their own bosses and were thinking about being able to take on someone else - Labour got it.
Labour had always been the party of hard work, often physical work, and the party that saw work as a means for social and economic advancement.
But to make that happen, Labour needed to be the party with a long-term economic plan.
A plan that was about giving people the tools they needed and restoring economic security to all New Zealanders.
During the speech, Mr Little announced Labour would establish a Future of Work Commission to work with New Zealanders over the next two years to develop policies for creating more jobs, creating better jobs and getting New Zealand ready for the economic challenges of the next 20 years.
Finance spokesman Grant Robertson would chair the commission.
The nature and experience of work was changing faster and more significantly now than at any time since the Industrial Revolution, he said.
''Our challenge is to ensure no-one is left behind or exploited and that we can generate sustainable wealth and work.''
Mr Little said the purpose of the commission was to look at how to adapt to the rapidly approaching changes ahead to make sure society and the economy generated work and incomes for a stable and prosperous community.
Also, how people prepared for the likelihood of multiple changes in jobs over a working life, including periods of no work, would be investigated, he said.
In a hark back to tactics employed by former Labour leader Helen Clark in opposition, the commission would travel around New Zealand, holding public seminars and workshops, drawing attention to issues around work in New Zealand that needed to be addressed.
It would be a major piece of work, also working closely with local universities, academics and external advisers, Mr Little said.
At a glance
• Labour establishes a Future of Work Commission to work with New Zealanders over the next two years to develop policies for creating more jobs, creating better jobs and getting New Zealand ready for the economic challenges of the next 20 years.
• New leader Andrew Little outlines challenges for all factions of the party to better identify themselves with real New Zealanders.
