Gendered pay gaps in New Zealand have shown signs of worsening this year. There has been little improvement since the Covid-19 pandemic. Data shows that that there’s a pay gap of 18% but even gaps up to 20% or 30% are common too.
Despite wage increases across the board, the gap doesn’t change. Many women aren’t moving into executive positions and continue to be undervalued in traditionally female dominated positions. Strategic Pay managing director Cathy Hendry said “This challenge of occupational and vertical segregation – or where women are working – is why tackling remuneration alone will never be enough to address the overall challenge of pay equity.”
It’s important to look at other benefits alongside salary. There are other elements to consider such as cars, insurance, superannuation and bonuses. Although there are fewer women in some traditionally male dominated roles, often women and men are doing the same roles for different pay.
Pay gaps can affect the time it takes to repay student loans, and many other aspects of life, so it is important to address the issue.
Transparency and disclosure can be critical in addressing this issue. The Equal Pay Act 50 years ago has not been enough as there has not been any repercussions or incentive for employers to do the right thing. The idea of mandated reporting of pay has been resisted in the past, although transparency would be the first step in making sure organisations are paying equally.
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