MindTheGap invited 160+ large employers to report on the registry. This is where the most impact will come from reducing pay gaps.

A number of small/medium businesses have also decided to voluntarily report.

MindTheGap recommends that all employers of 50 or more people should report their pay gaps. For organisations with fewer employers, we encourage them to undertake pay reviews and work to address the gaps they find.

Pay gaps exist when groups of employees receive significantly different pay. Pay gaps usually exist between groups of gender and ethnicities. A pay gap is measured in a number of ways - usually by calculating median or average pay.

National pay gaps are calculated from Statistics NZ data.

Now MindTheGap is calling on businesses to report their organisational pay gaps.

The Registry seeks to celebrate business leaders who are paying attention to closing their pay gaps.

Businesses currently calculate their gaps in different ways. Without a single methodology it is difficult to compare gaps on the register.

An organisation's pay gap number may reflect a range of factors such as the industry they are in, any legacies they may have inherited, and their knowledge of pay gap reporting.

While some factors can be fixed quicker than others, a “Yes” in the Registry indicates a business knows its pay gap/s, reports its pay gap/s, and is taking action to close it/them.

It is this bold leadership that MindTheGap celebrates.

Pay equity is paying people who do the same or similar work, the same rate of pay. This is enshrined in law in NZ with our Equal Pay Act 1972. All organisations should have zero pay equity gaps.

The Registry requires an organisation to be publishing – on its website or in its annual report – its overall aggregate pay gap number. MindTheGap is looking for gender, Māori and Pasifika numbers.

MindTheGap has been communicating with organisations since October 2021. The group has contacted businesses directly in writing, by phone, and through a range of representative bodies such as Business NZ, the Sustainability Business Council, Champions for Change, GenderTick, Chartered Accountants ANZ (CA ANZ) as well as the Institute of Directors (IoD).

Additionally the MindTheGap campaign has been advertising on radio, online and in the major centres to remind businesses, alongside a continuous flow of media coverage.

While the Campaign and Registry shouldn’t be a surprise to the large businesses listed and considerable effort has gone into communication with the business community, we welcome any further businesses that want to be included and will regularly update the Register.

The public service is already reporting gender gaps and will report ethnic gaps this year. MindTheGap welcomes and encourages employers in the community sector to also report.

MindTheGap encourages any organisation that hasn’t yet published its pay gaps to do so as soon as possible. The Registry will be updated monthly.

There are many pay gaps that can and ought to be measured in order to benefit our society. MindTheGap has started by focusing on gender, Māori and Pasifika and additional pay gaps can be added over time.

Customers, investors and employees want to know that they work for or support organisations that are committed to fixing what’s not fair. Investors and consumers increasingly look for transparency and fairness when making their decisions. It is therefore in the interests of any organisation wanting to attract and retain staff, grow markets, and find capital to be transparent and publish their pay gaps.

International evidence also shows that when businesses report publicly they are more likely to work toward closing them.

Yes, discrimination exists. Numerous research studies have proven that while some of the gap can be explained by education or experience, a large portion of it can be attributed to discrimination and the pay decisions of businesses. This is where unconscious bias and structural discrimination plays a part. It is these things that businesses need to understand and move to fix.

In NZ it is not currently a requirement to publish your company’s pay gaps. Over the past few years more businesses have recognised that understanding and committing to fixing their pay gaps has become an indicator of trust and fairness and is increasingly what employees expect. The Registry will celebrate these leaders and encourage others to step up and do the same.

Our Equal Pay Act of 1972 only considered gender, so this has been the focus of many of the businesses that have led in the area of pay gap reduction. It has not been common practice to gather workforce ethnicity data and there is considerable work needed in this area.

This is why required pay gap reporting of ethnicity is arguably necessary for progress to be made.

The MindTheGap Campaign has partnered with Strategic Pay and GenderTick to assist organisations to do this work. The group has held free workshops and connected interested businesses with those already reporting. MindTheGap will continue to add businesses to the Registry throughout 2022 and looks forward to celebrating a substantial rise in business pay gap reporting by October 20 2022, at which time NZ will mark 50 years of the Equal Pay Act.

The intention for the inaugural Registry reporting list is to include the most recent reporting period for the business. Therefore, qualifying for the Registry requires a business to report employee data from within a period not prior to CY2020.