Dear pay gap skeptic, this is for you. Photo / Hyejin Kang, 123rf
Dear pay gap skeptic, this is for you. Photo / Hyejin Kang, 123rf
OPINION
You know what the wise say: the first step to solving any problem is to acknowledge that the problem exists. It's the same with pay gaps.
You'd think that in the year 2022, everyone would understand that there are substantial pay gaps for women, Māori, Pasifika, ethnic communities, migrants,people with disabilities. And also believe that something needs to be done about it.
The ultra-idealistic Gen Z in me also wants to believe that people accept that pay gaps are in part caused by discrimination, sexism and racism in workplaces (as backed up by research).
But the emails, direct messages and social media comments I receive regularly as delivery manager for Mind The Gap indicate otherwise.
If you've ever encountered a pay gap skeptic or a "women-just-need-to-work-harder" type of comment, I feel you. In solidarity, I thought I'd share a bunch of questions and comments I've received in the 10 months we've been campaigning about gender and ethnic pay gaps and "blow them out the water" with some good solid research.
Sometimes a little kind explanation goes a long way.
Myth 1: Pay gaps are BS. How did you even come up with these fake numbers?
Fact: Stats NZ, aka New Zealand's official data agency, publishes pay gap figures annually. This allows us to see gender wage differences at the national level. Bonus fact: A few weeks ago, Stats NZ revealed that the gender pay gap has increased to 9.2 per cent this year. It's been stubborn for the past decade and it's only getting worse.
Myth 2: Pay gaps don't exist in New Zealand because we have the Equal Pay Act, duh.
Fact: Oh yes, you bet they still exist. Even though it's illegal to pay people differently for the same role because of their gender, it still happens. It's also only focused on "equal pay", which is different to pay gaps. And, to be honest, the Equal Pay Act is super outdated and not really helpful. It doesn't mention anything about other intersections, like ethnicity, age or disability.
Equal pay means paying people the same rate for the same role. Pay equity means paying people the same rate for jobs that require the same level of skills and energy. Pay gaps mean differences in what people earn on average.
Photo / Hasbro
Myth 3: Pay gaps are naturally caused by people having different occupations, skills, experiences and education levels.
Fact: Business behaviour drives pay gaps. Differences in qualification and occupation only account for about 20 per cent of the gender pay gap. The other 80 per cent is "unexplained".
It's no coincidence that women and minority groups are paid less on average. We have to acknowledge that unconscious bias and discrimination in workplaces are definitely part of the problem.
Myth 4: Pay gap reporting doesn't work to close pay gaps - and it's just too hard for businesses to do.
Fact: Mandatory reporting can reduce gender pay gaps by between 20-40 per cent. We know this from International evidence.
And pay gap reporting is easy. More than 55 of New Zealand's large employers are now reporting their gaps publicly - think big names like Meridian, Fonterra, SkyCity, Westpac, etc.
Nina Santos. Photo / Supplied
Myth 5: Women just need to work harder.
Fact: I'm not even going to dignify this myth with a response.
Instead, I implore everyone to start talking openly about pay and help us address the gaps. The culture of pay gap secrecy in New Zealand only makes pay gaps worse. That's why we're calling for pay gap reporting to be made compulsory for businesses.
The first step to solve any problem is to acknowledge that the problem exists. The first step to closing pay gaps is being bold enough to report it.
