A standard which shows that self-employed contractors have the basic financial skills they need to operate has become the first approved skills standard developed by Ringa Hora Services Workforce Development Council.
Standard 40059 – Apply Business Financial Skills to operate as a Self-Employed Contractor in Aotearoa New Zealand – includes basic skills such as calculating GST, interpreting contracts, and making quotes.
It has been registered on the New Zealand Qualifications Framework and is now live on the New Zealand Qualifications Authority (NZQA) website.
The standard was developed after the screen industry advised Toi Mai Workforce Development Council that it needed a micro-credential for contract workers in its industry.
Three standards were identified as required. Two were specifically for the screen industry, developed by Toi Mai:
- Demonstrate introductory knowledge of the operations and structure within the Aotearoa screen industry
- Demonstrate knowledge of the processes and ethics required in the Aotearoa screen industry.
The third standard, however, for business financial skills, was recognised as one that could apply to self-employed contractors in all industries and thus came under the remit of Ringa Hora, which is responsible for developing standards for the business and professional industry.
The standard was developed with input from Toi Mai and other Workforce Development Councils by Qualifications Development Facilitator Ronal Reddy.
Skills standards were created by NZQA to replace unit standards after public and industry feedback in 2021 suggested existing vocational qualifications were too complicated.
Unit standards were seen as being too detailed and prescriptive, making it difficult for education providers to pick up and develop training programmes.
“Skills standards have a more high-level outcome. They say learners have to be able to do tasks to a certain level and quality. But they’re not overly prescriptive on how training providers get the learner through that,” Ringa Hora qualifications and quality assurance general manager Te Oho Reedy says.
“Skill standards allow providers to create more flexible training packages and allow for more innovation and creativity.”
Ringa Hora would like to hear from any providers who might consider developing training packages to deliver this standard, either as a small package of learning or incorporating it into a programme of study, at [email protected].
