New Zealand Staff Turnover Survey

Benchmark your employee turnover against New Zealand data

The New Zealand Staff Turnover Survey was established in 2007 and is presented in the report as New Zealand’s only national staff turnover survey. Managed by Lawson Williams, with support from HRNZ, it gives employers practical benchmarking data across total turnover, voluntary turnover, involuntary turnover, and staff turnover in the first 12 months of employment.

 

       

 

The next survey is scheduled for 2026.

What is the New Zealand Staff Turnover Survey?

The New Zealand Staff Turnover Survey is a benchmarking survey for employers who want to understand how their turnover compares with the wider market and with organisations facing similar workforce conditions.

It looks beyond a single headline turnover number and gives organisations a more useful picture of workforce movement, including:

• total staff turnover
• voluntary turnover
• involuntary turnover
• turnover in the first 12 months of employment
• turnover by industry sector
• turnover by organisation type, size, revenue, and location
• retention strategies
• salary and benefit changes
• flexible work options
• skills shortages and vacancies

Why should employers benchmark staff turnover?

Staff turnover is a useful business indicator because it often reflects more than staff movement alone.

It can point to issues in recruitment fit, onboarding quality, role design, leadership, employee engagement, development, remuneration, or wider market pressure. The report notes that turnover above the natural level for your sector and location often signals preventable or unexpected loss, and estimates the cost of replacing an employee at 100% to 300% of base salary once hiring cost, onboarding, lost productivity, training investment, and related impacts are considered.

Why voluntary and involuntary turnover should be separated

One of the strongest features of the survey is that it separates voluntary and involuntary turnover.

Voluntary turnover is when employees choose to leave. Involuntary turnover relates to dismissals, restructures, redundancies, or other employer-led exits. Looking at the two separately gives a much clearer picture of what is happening and what type of response may be needed. High voluntary turnover may suggest engagement, progression, or pay issues. High involuntary turnover may point to hiring quality, restructuring, or economic pressure.

Why first-year turnover matters

For many employers, the most commercially important number is not total turnover. It is turnover in the first year of employment.

The latest report shows first-year turnover at 38.8% in 2023, which equates to roughly one in every 2.6 hires leaving within 12 months. That is a strong reason to review recruitment fit, onboarding, support, early engagement, and manager capability.

What the latest report shows

The latest report shows national staff turnover at 21.4% in 2023. Beneath that headline number, voluntary turnover was 17.4% and involuntary turnover was 4.0%, showing a more complex labour market picture than the overall average alone.

What participants receive

The report is presented in two sections.

Section 1 includes national staff turnover data and commentary.
Section 2 includes deeper analysis by industry sector, organisation type, size, revenue, and location, along with voluntary and involuntary turnover breakdowns, retention-related insights, remuneration change, flexible work, and vacancy pressure.

Participating organisations receive the full report free of charge.

Who should participate?

This survey is relevant for:

• HR and People and Culture teams
• CEOs and senior leaders
• business owners
• finance leaders
• operational managers
• organisations concerned about turnover, retention, onboarding, and workforce stability

Take part in the 2026 New Zealand Staff Turnover Survey

Participating organisations receive the full report free of charge and gain access to practical New Zealand turnover benchmarks that can support better decisions on recruitment, onboarding, retention, and workforce planning.

 

                      

Frequently Asked Questions