Pay gap narrows after larger increases in women's earnings
The pay gap between men and women in New Zealand dipped to its lowest on record in the June quarter after a significant increase in median hourly earnings for women.
The latest data from Stats NZ show that the country's gender pay gap dropped to 5.2% in the June 2025 quarter, down from 8.2% a year ago.
"The June 2025 quarter gender pay gap of 5.2% is the lowest since the series began in 1998," said Labour market spokesperson Abby Johnston in a statement.
"Annually, the gender pay gap declined by 3.0 percentage points, the first statistically significant annual decline noted since 2017."
Reason for record-low gap
In New Zealand, the gender pay gap is calculated by comparing the median hourly earnings of men and women from their wages and salaries.
The record-low pay gap between men and women in the June quarter comes after larger increases in median hourly earnings from wages and salaries for women, according to Stats NZ.
"Increases in women's median hourly earnings were seen across age groups, ethnicity, and occupation," Johnston said.
In the year to the June 2025 quarter, women's median hourly earnings from wages and salaries went up to $33.76, an increase of $1.68 (5.2%).
Men's median earnings, on the other hand, only went up 1.9% to $35.62 in the June 2025 quarter.
'Fantastic news' for women
Minister for Women Nicola Grigg said the latest data is "fantastic news for women" in the country.
"I'm incredibly proud of the businesses that have leaned into addressing their gender pay gaps. We know there is more to do to keep growing incomes and closing the pay gap and I encourage all employers to make this a priority," Grigg said in a statement.
The New Zealand government has been taking various steps to narrow the country's pay gap, including the recent passage of a new law to empowering employees to discuss pay openly. It also introduced a gender pay gap calculator last year.
"I want to thank everyone who has taken up the challenge, calculated their pay gap, and taken action to address it. Collectively we are all working towards achieving my ambition of growing economic empowerment for women across the country," Grigg said.
The minister, however, noted that a second iteration of the gender pay gap toolkit will be launched to address ethnic pay gaps in the coming months.
"Our Government is focused on supercharging the economy so that all New Zealanders are better off, including women and girls across the country," she said.
