CMNT_TITLE

Further to its observation, the Committee notes the information contained in the Government’s report and the attached documentation.

1. The Committee notes the passage of the Parental Leave and Employment Protection (Paid Parental Leave) Amendment Act, 2002, and the Minimum Wage Order, 2001, and asks the Government to provide information in future reports on the impact these new laws have had on equalising remuneration levels between men and women.

2. The Committee welcomes the recent amendment to the Human Rights Act (HRA) which created an Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner, who has some responsibilities relating to equity in remuneration. The Committee asks the Government to provide relevant information on the activities of this Commissioner.

3. The Committee also notes that the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Women (NACEW), which is a ministerial advisory body on matters relating to women and paid work, is now preparing a work plan that focuses in part on equity in remuneration. The Committee would be grateful if the Government would provide information on the NACEW work plan, as well as other relevant reports and other publications, as they become available.

4. The Committee notes the activities of the labour inspectorate of the Department of Labour which include the dissemination of employment information to the public. In light of the low number of equal pay complaints, however, it once again stresses the importance of effective enforcement mechanisms, including the investigative function of the labour inspectorate. In this context, the Committee notes that approximately 400,000 enquiries were processed by the information centre of the labour inspectorate, and it asks the Government to supply information as to how many of these enquiries related to issues of equal remuneration. It asks the Government to continue to supply information regarding the number of equal pay complaints brought under national legislation, the actions taken and the outcomes, as well as to provide information regarding the activities of the labour inspectorate, in addition to information dissemination, to ensure observance of the principle of equal remuneration for work of equal value. At the same time, while it notes that "Next Steps" contains information on the mechanism for making equal pay claims under the Equal Pay Act (EPA), the Committee requests that the Government indicate other measures that have been taken or that are being contemplated to disseminate information to the public regarding the right to bring a complaint of pay discrimination under all pertinent legislation, and the means for doing so.

5. The Committee notes that, in 2001, the average earnings of women in the public service were 84 per cent of those of men, but that where differences were examined within each occupation, the gap reduced by about half. As is noted in the State Services Commission’s Working Paper No. 15 ("The gender pay gap in the New Zealand public service"), this gap reduction suggests that there is significant job segregation in the public service: for example, men tend to work in higher paid occupations such as administration and general managers. The Committee asks for information from the Government on its efforts specifically related to the public service both to reduce the remuneration gap between men and women, and to combat job segregation.

6. The Government affirms that the asserted reduction in the gender pay gap is due to such trends such as: a reduction of the male-female gap in educational attainment; a reduction of the male-female gap in years of work experience; changes in the industrial and occupational composition of male and female employment; and shifts in the relative demand for industry-specific or occupational skills which men and women hold in different proportions. However, the Committee notes the Government’s acknowledgement that this analysis of trends dates to its previous report and that no new analysis has been done. The Committee asks the Government if it is considering updating this critical analysis in the near future.

7. The Committee notices with interest the report by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs (MWA) entitled Maori women: Mapping inequalities and pointing ways forward, which identifies a wide range of disadvantages suffered by Maori women, including disparities in remuneration as between them and both Maori and non-Maori men. The report recommends the development of options for improving analysis of and reporting with respect to this gap, with particular attention to such matters as occupational segregation, educational and training qualifications. The Committee asks the Government to keep it informed as to any policy and other developments with respect to these matters, including the department report-backs currently coordinated by MWA.

8. The Committee notes the Government’s request for technical assistance and hopes the Office will to be able to provide it in the near future.