New Zealand pay data reporting law guide
Introduction
New Zealand does not currently have pay data reporting legislation, however, we anticipate a requirement will be implemented in the near future.
Mandatory pay data reporting was proposed in 2023, which, if enacted, would require organizations with more than 250 employees to report on gender pay gaps, eventually expanding to include companies with 100 or more employees.
Companies may voluntarily submit their pay data via the Mind the Gap registry, a non-government organization which has been pushing the New Zealand government to adopt formal pay gap reporting laws. This registry shows whether an employer has published its gender pay gaps, including pay gaps for Māori and Pacific Peoples.
Although there isn’t a current pay data reporting requirement, the Equal Pay Act of 1972 prohibits pay discrimination on the basis of sex.
On Nov. 6, 2020, the country’s Equal Pay Amendment Act came into force. The act provides workers with a more streamlined process to raise and resolve pay equity claims.
New Zealand’s gender pay gap is currently 8.6%.
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New Zealand Pay Equity Claim Requirements
Pay Equity Claims Process – Key Points
- Employees or trade unions can raise pay equity claims for female-dominated jobs, or jobs that were historically female-dominated, which are currently, or historically, undervalued. Trade unions can also file pay equity claims with one or more employers for employees who are performing the same or substantially similar work.
- Employers must respond within 45 days. If the employer agrees there is an “arguable claim,” a bargaining process begins. The bargaining process involves an assessment of the claimant’s work and suitable comparator occupations.
- Employees who perform the same or substantially similar work as the claimant must be notified within 20 working days of a claim.
- Employees or unions can challenge the decision if the employer does not agree that pay inequities exist.
- Outcomes include a settlement with remuneration, any terms and conditions of employment and a pay equity review process. Alternatively, agreement may be reached that pay inequity does not exist. An outcome could also include bargaining regarding back pay.
New Zealand Pay Transparency Requirements
There are currently no legal requirements for employers to post salary details to applicants or employees in New Zealand regarding specific positions.
Employment Equity Standards
The Equal Pay Act 1972 requires employers to ensure equal pay for employees who perform the same, or substantially similar work.
In addition, employers must ensure “there is no differentiation, on the basis of sex, between the rates of remuneration offered and afforded by the employer for work that is exclusively or predominantly performed by female employees and the rate of remuneration that would be paid to male employees who (i) have the same, or substantially similar skills, responsibility, and experience, and (ii) work under the same, or substantially similar conditions, and with the same or substantially similar degrees of effort. ”
The Risks of Non-Compliance
If a pay equity claim is raised and proven, New Zealand companies face reputational risks, in addition to the potential costs of settlement and back pay.
How Can Trusaic Assist with New Zealand Pay Equity Analysis Compliance?
1. Comply - Use Trusaic's GPDR solution to complete required reporting by compliance deadlines:
Applicability Determination: Perform an accurate assessment of your applicability, according to jurisdictional specific definitions and regulatory frameworks so you can understand your reporting obligations across the globe.
Deadline Management: Prepare ahead of time with project timelines, timely notifications, and reminders, to keep you on track to meeting jurisdictional deadlines.
Expert Legal Guidance and Support: Benefit from the expertise of our trusted pay equity attorneys, so you understand your compliance requirements across a diverse global regulatory landscape. Receive world-class customer support, including assistance throughout the compliance process.
Streamlined Data Extraction: Collect the necessary data for analysis and submission with a simple click of a button; powered by certified data integrations with world's largest HCM, HR and Payroll platforms, including Workday, SAP, UKG and ADP. Provide data through Trusaic's Workplace Equity platform, a SOC 2 Type II and GDPR-compliant tool for data transmission.
Data Quality Assurance: Trusaic performs data validations to ensure your collected data and information aligns with the standards and definitions provided by each jurisdiction.
Compliant Report Outputs: Take away the burden of reporting by effortlessly generating outputs containing necessary compliance information.
Reporting Checklist: Follow step-by-step guidance on where, when and how to report to any jurisdiction's regulatory body, as well as your required internal disclosure and public posting obligations.
2. Correct - Use PayParity and OpportunityParity to understand, explain and resolve pay disparities:
Risk Assessments: Stay aware of any potential exposure to any government audit or litigation. Our cross-functional team of data scientists, statisticians, and government regulatory compliance experts have rigorously worked to reverse-engineer the calculations that will be used by jurisdictions to estimate pay disparities, so you can prepare in advance.
Understand your Pay Gaps: Leverage Trusaic's pay equity software solution to explain your pay gaps so you can understand the root causes and safeguard from equal pay claims and legal action.
Resolve Pay Disparities: Make pay adjustments where applicable so you can eliminate pay disparities and show improvements in your reported pay gaps from one year to the next.
Identify Barriers to Professional Growth: Ensure workforce diversity and equity with hiring, promotion, retention, and opportunity analytics using opportunity equity software solution.
3. Communicate - Use Trusaic's Workplace Equity Solution to communicate narratives and share salary ranges with confidence:
Workplace Equity Narrative: Communicate the sources of your pay gaps, progress objectives, and corrective measures to employees and internal stakeholders with Trusaic's Workplace Equity product suite. Show data-backed progress in your pay gaps over time.
Salary Range Explainability: Use Salary Range Finder to establish and post competitive and equitable pay ranges to confidently comply with pay transparency laws.
Mitigate Risk of Recurrent Pay Disparities: Ensure new hires receive fair pay offers with the use of external labor market data and internal pay equity analytics to reduce unplanned and expensive pay remediations.
The EU Directive
New Zealand organizations with operations in EU member states will be required to comply with gender pay gap reporting in those countries.
Trusaic is GDPR compliant and can assist any organization in any EU state in meeting its obligations under both the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the EU Pay Transparency Directive.
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and receive OpportunityParityTM at no additional cost
Sign up for PayParity by July 31, 2024 and receive OpportunityParityTM at no additional cost