Media release: Council of Trade Unions

Working for free

There is 13 percent left of 2016. In New Zealand we have a pay imbalance of what men and women are paid. On average across our society men are paid 13 percent more than women. So today is symbolic of women working for free for the rest of 2016.

“In May this year Equal Pay Principals were presented to the Government. The group which developed these Equal Pay Principles, chaired by the Dame Patsy Reddy and included representatives of business, Government and working people,” CTU President Richard Wagstaff said.

“The Prime Minister needs to show leadership on this issue and accept the equal pay principles so that we, as a society can make progress and fix our nations gender pay imbalance. Today working people, represented on the joint working group have written to the Prime Minister urging him to take action.”

“If the Prime Minister was serious about fixing the gender pay imbalance then why has it taken almost six months to agree to the principles? New Zealand women have waited long enough. We were the first country in the world where women successfully won the right to vote. We could be the first country in the world to ensure that all women are paid fairly,” Wagstaff said.

ENDS

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