New Zealand’s gender pay gap is known as the difference in the hourly wages paid to men and women in the country. As of 2021, the pay gap stands at 9.5%, which is significantly lower than it was a few years back. The percentage has been going down and up each year since the bill came into working.
Until 1960 it was legal for men and women doing the same work to get paid different amounts in the public and private sector. In 2021 there is now legislation that prohibits gender discrimination in the workplace and employment by companies.
The Government Service Equal Pay Act of 1960 abolished gender-based pay scales only in the public service sector and was then extended to the private sector. With The Human Rights Act of 1993 and the Employment elations Act of 2000, the prohibition of gender discrimination in all aspects of employment, including pay, was established,
New Zealand has signed international agreements with the International Labour Organization and convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women in New Zealand.
With communities, the public, society, and organizations having their own opinion on the salary gap between men and women, the New Zealand government has made various statements to address the issue and have explained it thoroughly. Ty international standards, in comparison, New Zealand has a moderately positive ratio in fair pay between men and women. The larger pay gap between men and women in New Zealand is seen as part of the problem that women are clustered into lower-paid occupations and that they are not properly represented in higher-level manager positions.
A gender pay gap is not necessarily a validation of failure to ensure pay is equal for all genders doing equal work. Looking at the international market, there is no set pay rate for equality in the world. The gender wage gap provides an international comparison and is calculated by median hourly wages paid to full-time workers.