Kia ora,

I’m making this Official Information Act request as part of ADHDInquiryNZ, a grassroots, unfunded, and non-partisan volunteer initiative supporting a public petition calling for a Parliamentary inquiry into systemic harm to people with ADHD in Aotearoa. This request focuses on information held by your agency to help identify how ADHD is currently recognised within existing systems. The information gathered from this and related requests will be used to help identify any patterns across agencies and will contribute to the evidence provided to the Petitions Committee when the petition period closes. I appreciate the time involved in OIA responses.

Please treat this as a request for official information under the OIA. I understand the agency’s obligation to assist under s 13 and that a decision should be made within 20 working days of receipt (with any transfer within 10 working days). If any part of this request requires clarification, please let me know no later than 5 working days from receipt. If an extension under s 15A is needed, please state the reason and duration.
This request is confined to information held by MBIE; please do not transfer for commentary.

Please provide the following information (2018–present):

1. Consideration of a Positive Duty
Any papers, briefings, advice, or correspondence that consider introducing a positive duty or proactive employer obligation relating to disability inclusion, neuroinclusion, or accessibility within the Employment Relations Act 2000, the Human Rights Act 1993, or related employment legislation.

If none exist, please confirm this.

2. International Comparisons
Any analyses comparing New Zealand’s current anti-discrimination or employment framework with overseas models that include a positive duty or proactive obligation, for example:
-the UK Equality Act 2010
-the Australian Disability Discrimination Act 1992
-any other relevant international approaches.

If none exist, please confirm this.

3. Neuroinclusion, Accommodations, and Proactive Obligations
Any guidance, internal advice, policy work, or Ministerial briefings that reference:
-“neuroinclusion”, “neurodiversity”, or “ADHD”
-reasonable accommodations / workplace adjustments
-proactive employer responsibilities
-reducing reliance on complaint-driven mechanisms for disabled or neurodivergent workers.

If none exist, please confirm this.

4. Cross-Agency Engagement
Any correspondence or work programmes with the Human Rights Commission, WorkSafe NZ, Whaikaha, MSD, or disability/neurodiversity advocacy organisations relating to proactive employer obligations, positive duties, workplace accessibility, or neuroinclusion.

If none exist, please confirm this.

Format: Where datasets or tables are provided, please supply them in machine-readable format (CSV or original spreadsheet file) with any available data dictionaries or field definitions.

If information is not held
If your agency does not hold some or all of the information requested, that absence itself helps clarify how ADHD and neurodivergence are currently recognised within employment policy and regulatory settings. Identifying such gaps is part of building the evidence base for an informed, coordinated response.

Please confirm if the information is not held, and include any existing documents or correspondence that record a decision not to collect, analyse, or monitor work in this area. If applicable, please indicate how related matters are categorised (for example, under disability, mental health, workplace wellbeing, or diversity and inclusion).

Ngā mihi,
Elspeth Baker-Vevers