Will pay equity close the 'pay gap' between men and women. The existence of a 'pay gap', where the average earnings of men are higher than those of women, has resulted in accusations of discrimination in the workplace. The inevitable call for government intervention has followed. The government recently announced the establishment of a taskforce to progress pay and employment equity between men and women in the public sector. This paper seeks to analyse the underlying issues around pay equity. It starts with an examination of the evidence to determine how big the gap really is and whether discrimination is to blame. It then looks at the effectiveness of interventions to address the pay gap. The paper concludes with a discussion of policy approaches to improve earnings of women and what the future is likely to hold. By Justin Coutts.

By New Zealand Business Roundtable, New Zealand.

Employment Policy Resource.