June 29, 2022
Pay gap transparency would boost Māori wage
A group advocating to close gender and ethnic pay gaps says the Government must move faster if it wants to help people who are struggling with low wages.
The Government yesterday published its response to the Education and Workforce Select Committee inquiry into pay transparency, which recommended a mandatory and comprehensive pay transparency regime rather than voluntary compliance.
MindTheGap founders Jo Cribb and Dellwyn Stuart says that response failed to include concrete timelines, budgets or resourcing to see the necessary work happen at pace.
Ms Stuart says Māori, Pasifika, women and ethnic communities are suffering now from discrimination which is driving lower wages.
She says that legislative changes to make pay gap reporting compulsory could increase some incomes by up to $35 per week.
The pay gap means on average for every dollar a Pākehā man earns, a Pākehā woman earns 89 cents, a Māori woman 81 cents and a Pasifika woman 75 cents.