Women and work, human rights &
challenges in New Zealand
Dr Jackie Blue
EEO Commissioner
The 1950’s
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
2
Life in 1951 for women
• 24% of university students
• 25% of women in the
labour force
• Average age of first birth
23 years
• Average number of
children = 4
• 5% female MPs
• Our most common
occupation was clerical
work
Waterfront dispute union protest,
Wellington 1951
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
3
The 1970’s…
Life in 1971 for women
• 33% of tertiary
education students
• 39% of women overall
in the labour force
• 4 elected members of
Parliament
• Our most common
occupation was
clerical work
• Women earned 69%
of men’s average
hourly earnings
Air hostesses model new NEC uniforms in the
1970s
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
5
…and now
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
6
………………………….for women
• 60 % of tertiary graduates are
female
• 64 % female labour force
participation rate
• 31% female MPs
• Average age at first birth 28
years
• Average number of children = 2
• 57% of professionals are women.
Women still dominate in
community and personal service
workers, clerical and sales
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
7
How work has changed in 100 years
TOP TEN OCCUPATIONS
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
•
1906
House servant
Dressmaker/tailor
Tea-room/eating house keeper
School teacher
Draper
Sick-nurse
Lodging housekeeper
Lodging houseservant
Clerk
Milliner
TOTAL
64%
2006
• Sales assistant
• General clerk
• Personal care assistant
• Primary school teacher
• Receptionist
• Sales representative
• Commercial cleaner
• Nurse (registered)
• Accounts clerk
• Retail manager
TOTAL
30.8%
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
9
What has changed for
women
• Our female population is increasingly diverse
• We have increasing rates of participation in
higher education
• Our labour force participation rate has grown
• Graduate gender pay gap divergent
– 6 % at start and widens to 17% after 5 years ( MWA 2010)
• Females spent an average 4 hours and 20
minutes a day on unpaid work; males did 2 ½
hours (Time Use Survey 2009/10)
Dr Rose Ryan, Heathrose
10
Extrapolating out……………
18
16
14
12
10
8
6
4
2
0
-2
1998
2006
2014
2040
State Services Commission Human Resource
Capability Survey 2014 –
Public Service Pay-Gender Gap
Dr Jackie Blue presentation Chartered
Accountants NZ July 2015
13
Aon Hewitt Remuneration Survey 2013
( 124 NZ organisations in most industry sectors)
Across the market women are paid less than men
at the same organisational level
Courtesy AON HEWITT
14
Aon Hewitt Remuneration Survey 2013
Even in professions that are dominated by
women, men still earn a premium
Dr Jackie Blue presentation Chartered
Accountants NZ July 2015
15
Aon Hewitt Remuneration Survey 2013
Dr Jackie Blue presentation Chartered
Accountants NZ July 2015
16
Pay Equity Claims
•
•
•
•
Aged care workers
Midwives
Education support workers
CYF social workers
Progress of Pay Equity in
New Zealand
• 1972 - Equal Pay Act extended pay equity coverage to the private
sector.
• 1977 - Human Rights Act made it unlawful to discriminate on the
grounds of sex (including pregnancy), marital status + family status.
• 1990 - Employment Equity Act 1990 addressed both equal
employment opportunity and pay equity
– Repealed 6 months after it was introduced
– EEO Trust established
• 1998 - Primary teachers and principals with the same job size,
experience and qualifications received the same pay as secondary
teachers and principals
• 2004 - Pay and Employment Equity Unit established in the
Department of Labour
• 2009 – Unit discontinued
• 2015/2016 ???
TRACKING EQUALITY AT WORK
tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
Dr
History
• Tracking Equality at Work 2011
• Tracking Equality at work 2014
– Employment
– Pay
– Leadership
– Discrimination
• tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
• tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
Pay rates labour market 2014
- Tracking Equalities at Work
http://tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz/
22
Pay rates public service 2014
-Tracking Equalities at Work
http://tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz/
23
Minimum wage earners 2014
Tracking Equalities at Work
http://tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz/
24
EMPLOYMENT 2011 2014
Labour Force
Participation
NEET
68%
11.6%
MARGINALISED
68.6%
• All Females,
• Pacific Women (15-24),
• MELAA+ Women (15-24)
10.7%
• All Females,
• Maori & Pacific peoples (20s)
• MELAA+ Women (20s)
Under-Employment
3.9%
3.9%
• All Females,
• All young people under 25
(except Asian)
Unemployment
6.4%
5.4%
• Maori & Pacific people under 25
@DrJackieBlue | Tracking Equality at Work | tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
PAY
2011 2014
MARGINALISED
Minimum Wage
$13.00
$14.25
Young People and women over 25
Minimum Wage
DPI
Women:
1.2
Women:
1.1
Median Hourly
Pay
$20.38
$21.97
• All Females,
• All ethnicities except European
Annual Median
FTE Salary
(Public Service)
$56,000
$60,000
• All Females
•Maori & Pacific
• All Females,
• Young people under 25
• Maori & Pacific (slightly)
@DrJackieBlue | Tracking Equality at Work | tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
LEADERSHIP 2011 2014
MARGINALISED
Public Sector: Boards
41.1%
41.7%
• All Females (no ethnicity data
available)
Public Sector: SMT
39.6%
42%
• All Females,
• Maori, Asian, Pacific peoples
LEADERSHIP 2013 2014
MARGINALISED
Private: NZX Boards
12.4%
14.4%
• All Females (no ethnicity or
disability data available)
Private Organisations
SMT
32%
19%
• All Females (no ethnicity or
disability data available)
@DrJackieBlue | Tracking Equality at Work | tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
DISCRIMINATION
2014
Complaints in employment by
complainant
294 (mainly
Women)
Complaints in pre-employment
by complainant
123 (mainly
Women)
MARGINALISED
•The Commission remains
concerned that there is
significant under-reporting
• In some instances the
Commission data is incomplete
Complaints in employment by
grounds of discrimination
306 (mainly race &
disability based)
Complaints in pre-employment
by grounds of discrimination
130 (mainly
disability)
Complaints about sexual
harassment
58 (majority are
Women)
• MBIE, through the ERA, deal
with employment issues that
may also cover unlawful
discrimination & sexual
harassment. This data is not in a
form that can be included in the
Commission’s stats currently
@DrJackieBlue | Tracking Equality at Work | tracking-equality.hrc.co.nz
Recommendations
• Employment
– MBIE focus on marginalised groups
– Disabled people recommendation ( DAP)
• Pay
– Government equal pay for equal value 2020
– State sector publish gender +ethnic pay gaps with plan to eliminate
– Disabled people MWE recommendation (DAP)
• Leadership
– Government use special measures to promote under represented groups into
senior leadership roles
– Responsible Ministers ensure gender and ethnic diverse appointments to state
sector boards
– NZX strengthen gender reporting - all companies must have policy and report
on implementation
• Discrimination
– HRC + MBIE develop action plan to encourage use of complaints mechanism
– ERA collect disaggregated data regarding discrimination + sexual harassment
New Zealand’s Second
www.npa.hrc.co.nz
Our first NPA in 2004
• We consulted many interested groups
and civil societies
• Produced a 444 page document with a ‘wish list’ of 177
recommendations
• Essentially ignored by the Government
• We knew for the 2nd NPA we would have to do things
differently
www.npa.hrc.co.nz
www.npa.hrc.co.nz
What happens next ?
2015 (remainder) – education to civil society
and officials of key government agencies
Early 2016 – Turn on the SMART actions
2016 – bring together issues roundtables between civil
society and Government e.g disabled peoples issues
Continue to update NPA as actions are strengthened
and/or new actions/policy are added
Begin monitoring, develop indicators
What can Zonta do ?
•
•
•
•
Challenge the strength of actions
Challenge SMART criteria of actions
Challenge why some UPRs were rejected
Challenge gaps – UPR recs that were accepted
but there are no Government actions
• Keep talking about the issues that were not
picked up in the UPR recs
• Gender equality in pay, employment
leadership has yet to be realised
and
– UN Women’s Empowerment Principles
•
•
•
•
Government must lead
Vulnerable groups of women
Data collection crucial
SDGs # 5 Achieve gender equality and empower
all women and girls
– indicators to be globally but monitored by ? NZ Stats