Normalising te reo Māori across non-traditional Māori language domains
Key Results
Taken together, the results indicate a broad but inconsistent use of Māori language across Aotearoa organisations. The most common motive for adopting Māori language, terminology and tikanga Māori in the workplace is to have better engagement with customers, stakeholders and the organisation’s Māori staff. The use of these Māori factors is often driven by staff willingness and organisational values based on diversity, inclusion, cultural respect and honouring Te Tiriti o Waitangi (the Treaty of Waitangi), rather than organisational size. In addition, the incorporation of Māori language, terminology and tikanga Māori is shown to significantly enhance workplace mindfulness and job satisfaction; two wellbeing benefits that are not entirely realised by New Zealand organisations. Organisations that rarely or never use te reo Māori generally believed there was no need for it and failed to recognise any organisational benefits related to te reo me ngā tikanga Māori adoption. The most notable barriers were the multinational nature of organisations and a lack of Māori staff or knowledge about Māori culture. The fear of ‘getting it wrong’ prevented some organisations from attempting to incorporate Māori language and Māori customs into their workplace culture. Overall, these results provide a rich and powerful understanding of where Māori language, terminology and tikanga Māori sit in the workplaces of Aotearoa and the attitudes toward it.