One business manager says there seems to be a failing at primary school level.

Doug Hallberg estimates that, when he was working as a site manager for Carter Holt Harvey in Whangarei, as much as 30 per cent of his workforce struggled with basic literacy problems.

The company ran a literacy and numeracy training programme to meet the shortfall, to enable the business to function. "Virtually every role had a data entry requirement. We would have put over 100 people through training, just on that one site."

Now, he's regional operations manager for Affco and says literacy issues come up when that company recruits for some roles, too.

SUPPLIED Josh Williams says workers who struggle with literary are not people who are going to enrol in courses.

He encounters people with problems with everything from understanding written instructions to issues doing data entry. It signals a fundamental problem with the education system, he says.

READ MORE: New Zealand's falling literacy rates are due to poor teacher training

"We need to go back to basics, making sure kids are leaving primary school with a basic understanding of how to read and write, basic arithmetic. That's clearly missing at the moment. NCEA is all well and good but there's a gap at that primary school level."

CAMERON BURNELL/STUFF Kirk Hope says improving the literacy and numeracy skills of the workforce is growing in importance.

Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope says workforce literacy and numeracy needs urgent attention. He said little had changed since 2006.

The Industry Training Federation (ITF), Business New Zealand, English Language Partners, the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (NZCTU), and Literacy Aotearoa have banded together to call for increased government funding, greater awareness, collaboration and prioritisation of adult literacy needs.

"While this is not a new need, improving the literacy and numeracy skills of the workforce is growing in importance as sectors become digitised and automated," Hope said.

Employment forecasts show New Zealand's growth areas will be the industries with the lowest literacy levels - including construction, hospitality, wholesale and retail trade, and business service industries.

"Poor literacy and numeracy skills are reflected in risks, errors, and accidents in the workplace, contributing to low productivity which is a major issue for employers."

He said the problem must be addressed to build a skilled and productive workforce and enhance social and economic inclusiveness.

"Research both internationally and within New Zealand has shown that people who have good literacy and numeracy skills are able to fully participate in a modern society and high-skill economy," said Literacy Aotearoa chief executive Bronwyn Yates. "Yet a significant number of New Zealanders do not have sufficient skills to do so."

According to the most recent International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) adult numeracy skills in New Zealand are in general higher than the OECD average.

But the country is still underperforming, at 13 out of the 40 nations surveyed. The gap in average literacy and numeracy skills between Maori adults and the total population narrowed between 1996 and 2014, as it did for Pasifika.

"That's positive, but the gap is still substantial and not narrowing fast enough," Yates said. "In another 20 years we may be in a better position, but that would mean another generation of literacy lag.

"The results of workforce literacy programmes are consistently positive. Higher performing, safer workplaces and more confident, competent workers.

"Stepping up to better working lives calls for increased government funding, greater awareness, collaboration and prioritisation of adult literacy needs."

Josh Williams, chief executive of ITF, said there were a million New Zealanders below the level the OECD said was necessary to fully participate in society, which was equivalent to a reading age of about 12. He said it was difficult to tackle because "these are not people who are going to enrol in courses. They're going to their jobs every day."

Some were people who spoke English as a second language, he said. Improving literacy was the closest thing to a "silver bullet" in education, he said.

Yates said people who sought to improve their literacy and numeracy became more engaged in their communities, were better equipped to assist their children with their education and had the confidence to undertake further education, or seek employment opportunities.

Hallberg said people who went through training saw improvements across their lives. "They got that value at work but also in the things they were able to do at home."