An Ethnic Employment Plan released today shows that the Pay Gap in New Zealand is having a significant impact on our ethnic communities according to the founders of a campaign aimed at closing the pay gap.

Released by Minister for Diversity, Inclusion and Ethnic Communities Priyanca Radhakrishnan, the plan includes an intention to work with government agencies to identify how to reduce the ethnic pay gap and support career progression.

Co-founder of the MindTheGap campaign, Dellwyn Stuart said the national pay gap is 9.1% but the pay gap for ethnic groups could be much higher than that.

“This plan coming exactly a week after Parliament’s Education and Workforce Select Committee made recommendations about closing the pay gap, shows there is real momentum building to take practical steps to address this long-standing issue.”

The MindTheGap campaign believes mandatory pay gap reporting is required to reduce pay gaps. It recently established a Public Pay Gap Registry for employers to report their pay gaps and is pushing for the Government to work with business to create standardised measurement and coverage of all employers.

“Evidence shows when businesses know and report their pay gaps, they are more likely to work towards closing them,” Ms Stuart says.

Last week the Select Committee called for a comprehensive approach to addressing both ethnic and gender pay gaps while ensuring there was no reduction in wages for any staff.

The MindTheGap campaign’s Public Pay Gap Registry shows 50 of our large employers are reporting their gender pay gaps. Seven of those are also reporting their Māori pay gap, and seven are reporting their Pasifika pay gap.

The voluntary registry, a world first, shows each company’s name, Board Chair, CEO, whether they are reporting their pay gaps as well as a link to committed organisations’ reports.

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