Gender pay gap hits low-paid workers harder

Gender pay gap hits low-paid workers harder

The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) is concerned about the widening gap between men’s and women’s pay.

The latest Quarterly Employment Survey shows the gender pay gap has increased to 12.81 percent, up half a percent from the last quarter.

“Ninety-five percent of our members are women so any gender pay gap is a concern. Over the last decade, we have fought hard to boost members’ pay and conditions and to achieve fairer pay. A widening gender pay gap erodes those gains,” NZNO president Nano Tunnicliff said. “It also calls into question the government’s commitment to pay equity.”

She points out that NZNO had many low-paid women workers, predominantly Māori and Pacific women, many of whom earn little more than the minimum wage. “We have been campaigning for years to improve pay rates for our members working in aged care and for Māori and iwi providers, with limited success. Any gender pay gap impacts more severely on low-paid workers. New Zealand prides itself on being an equal society but a very low minimum wage and a widening pay gap is proof that major inequities exist in our society.”

“Such inequities contribute to poorer health outcomes and research shows that inequalities in any one section of society mean worse health outcomes for all of society,” Tunnicliff said.

ENDS

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