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Tōkeke ā-utu | Pay Equity

Pay equity is about ensuring that work is valued based on the skills, responsibilities, experience, and effort it requires. The pay equity assessment process allows us to look beyond what task someone is doing to understand and properly value work.

Pay equity settlements are powerful vehicles for closing gender, Māori, Pacific and ethnic pay gaps, particularly for vulnerable workforces.

To find out more about closing pay gaps click here.

Find out about

Many women in Aotearoa New Zealand work in occupations that are more than 60% female
Female-dominated occupations tend to be lower paid.

Ngā Kōrero Āwhina me ngā Rauemi mō te Utu Taurite | Pay Equity guidance and resources

Te whiwhi me te whakaara i tētahi take | Raising and receiving a claim

Te aromatawai i tētahi kerēme | Assessing a claim

Pay Equity Assessment Process Guide (PDF, 2MB)

Conducting interviews for a Pay Equity work assess

Being interviewed for a Pay Equity work assessment

  • Te Orowaru Glossary This glossary supports the use of Te Orowaru Questionnaire and Te Orowaru Factor Plan and will ensure everyone is clear about the language being used and what it means.
  • Te Orowaru QuestionnaireThe questionnaire guides the conversation between the interviewer and the interviewee to ensure that useful information is gathered to inform the pay equity process.
  • Te Orowaru UiuiThis is te reo Māori translation of the questionnaire.
  • Te Orowaru Factor PlanTe Orowaru Factor Plan is designed to describe and compare work. It uses factor-based assessment and parties allocate appropriate factor levels depending on the requirements of the work. This process builds a detailed understanding of the work, and how claimant and comparator work compare.
  • Te Orowaru Factor Scoring Booklet Factor scoring is an optional process parties may agree to use to test initial work assessment conclusions. This involves overlaying the factor levels with the points system to help the parties get clarity on the degree of comparability between claimant and comparator work.
  • Te Orowaru FAQ
Te Orowaru booklets

Te whakatau take | Settling a claim

Te tātaitai rā mahi mō te kerēme utu taurite | Pay equity claim working days calculator

If a claim is raised the employer has specific timeframes to provide written correspondence, notify parties and make decisions. This calculator helps employers respond to a pay equity claim within the legislative timeframes set out in the Equal Pay Act 1972. These timeframes are measured in working days.

Definition of working day

For the purposes of the specified timeframes in the Equal Pay Act 1972 the definition of working day in the Interpretation Act 1999 (Part 5, section 29) applies. Working day means a day of the week other than –

  1. a Saturday, a Sunday, Waitangi Day, Good Friday, Easter Monday, Anzac Day, the Sovereign’s birthday, and Labour Day; and
  2. a day in the period commencing with 25 December in a year and ending with 2 January in the following year; and
  3. if 1 January falls on a Friday, the following Monday; and
  4. if 1 January falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, the following Monday and Tuesday; and
  5. if Waitangi Day or Anzac Day falls on a Saturday or a Sunday, the following Monday.

Section 35(2) of the Interpretation Act 1999 – Time, is also relevant when counting the working days after a claim has been raised. A period of time described as beginning from or after a specified day, act or event does not include that day or the day of the act or event.

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