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A commercial cleaning company that said it was “testing the market” by advertising a job without pay has apologized and withdrawn the job ad.
Fresh Desk has advertised a cleaning trainee position in Wellington on Seek New Zealand.
The only catch was that the job candidate would be working for free, and the ad stated that the role was a “volunteer position.”
“We are checking the market to see if there is interest in a voluntary cleanup,” it said.
A spokesperson for Fresh Desk said the ad has since been removed.
“We accept and sincerely apologize for our recent job advertisement, which suggested a volunteer role as a cleaner,” she said.
“This was an error in judgment and we deeply regret any frustration or concern, particularly in light of the current economic pressures on workers and the cleaning industry.
“This incident underscores the importance of making thoughtful hiring decisions, and we are committed to continually improving our processes to better serve both our team and our community.”
The cleaning team, which consisted of 13 cleaners and one manager, were all paid at or above the living wage of NZ$27.80 an hour ($25.23), she said.
“In today’s difficult trading environment, we have seen reduced demand for certain services, but we remain focused on maintaining fair employment practices and ensuring a positive work environment for all of our employees.”
It comes at a difficult time for the labor market.
Unemployment rose to 4.8 percent in the September quarter and is expected to continue rising above five percent in 2025.
Companies have already started to reduce their labor needs amid ongoing recessionary conditions with layoffs in a number of sectors, including the public sector, the meat processing industry and the transportation industry.
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