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PHANZA Professional Historians of New Zealand / Aotearoa @phanza.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

PHANZA stands in support of staff at Archives NZ and the National Library, who are facing proposed cuts that would eliminate 47 FTE roles across two institutions that are vital to the work of our members. Read PHANZA's press release below and please share widely with your networks.

Press Release: 3 September 2026

Job losses at Archives New Zealand and the National Library will harm access to history

Yesterday, PHANZA received news about a proposed restructure at two institutions that are vital to the work of professional historians.
The proposed cuts would eliminate 47 roles across the two organisations. The Public Service Association has indicated this represents 12% of the workforce and comes on top of earlier redundancies.

Libraries and archives provide vital knowledge infrastructure. As sources of information, their collections support innovation and discovery, foster an informed citizenry, and protect our collective national memory. Job losses also raise alarming questions about institutional ability to fulfil the government’s legal deposit and record-keeping obligations

Historians fundamentally rely on archives and libraries. We could not do our jobs without the collections management undertaken by highly qualified and community-minded professionals who already achieve so much with limited resources. Ongoing cuts and staffing reductions place archivists and librarians in an impossible position.

Reductions in staffing levels at national institutions charged with acquiring, safeguarding, and providing access to our collective history will meaningfully diminish the public's ability to access these taonga. As professional historians, we are especially concerned about how the proposed cuts will affect our ability to effectively research topics and areas of significance to families, communities, and government.

With the upcoming election on 7 November, PHANZA encourages its members and the public to engage with candidates and political parties about their support for cultural institutions and to advocate for maintaining public access to these national treasures.

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PHANZA Professional Historians of New Zealand / Aotearoa @phanza.bsky.social · 03/09/2026

Full text of this release is available using the Alt text function. Click on the 'Alt' icon at bottom right of the image, then click again to expand.

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