Mind the gap: understanding New Zealand’s gender pay divide

Today marks the 230^th day of working for the year, according to my rough calculation. This means for the rest of the year, women in New Zealand are effectively working for free due to the gender pay gap.

According to Statistics New Zealand, the national median gender pay gap as of June 2024 was 8.2%, down from 14.9% in 2008. Despite this progress, it will take nearly 100 years to close the gap entirely from when the Equal Pay Act was passed in 1972.

The gender pay gap reflects the difference in earnings of women and men, highlighting how we value their contributions in the workforce. This disparity can be attributed to factors such as conscious and unconscious bias in hiring and pay decisions, differences in the industries women and men work in, and a lack of workplace flexibility.

In Australia, the Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA) was established under the Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 to promote and improve gender equality in the workplace. Under this act, all non-public sector employers with 100 or more employees must report to the WGEA on various data points.

This reporting has enabled the WGEA to track the Australian gender pay gap, which has decreased from 28.6% in November 2014 to 21.8% in November 2024.

To address the gender pay gap, businesses are advised to start measuring it to understand the extent of the problem. Other recommended actions include setting key performance indicators for leadership to reduce the gap, proactively increasing the number of women in leadership positions, and encouraging men to take advantage of flexible work arrangements.

In New Zealand, there is no mandatory reporting on the gender pay gap, leaving companies to voluntary disclose.

Our analysis of the largest 50 listed NZ companies reveals that around half publicly disclose their gender pay gap. Interestingly, about 40% of these companies have a gender pay gap greater than the national average, with five companies reporting a gap exceeding 30%.

This means women are earning less than $0.70 for every $1 earned by men. These figures are based on median values to avoid the influence of outliers. On a positive note, the Warehouse Group is the only company to report a 0% gender pay.

While progress has been made, the journey towards closing the gender pay gap is far from over. By continuing to raise awareness, we can move closer to a world where equal pay is a reality for everyone.

Under our Craigs’ sustainability scoring framework, we consider the gender pay gap of every company we assess and the actions taken to address it.

To learn more about the work our sustainability team undertakes and how we can help to incorporate your values into investment decisions, contact your investment adviser or visit a nearby branch.

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