1. Pay Equity—Joint Working Group on Pay Equity Principles and Government ResponseMETIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green) to the Minister for WomenORAL QUESTIONSQUESTIONS TO MINISTERSPay Equity—Joint Working Group on Pay Equity Principles and Government Response1. METIRIA TUREI (Co-Leader—Green) to the Minister for Women: When she said that she was fully equipped to kinda leap in and tackle" the challenge of pay equity why is she ruling out a law change to shrink the pay gap in the private sector?Hon PAULA BENNETT (Minister for Women): Can I start by wishing the member a happy International Women's Day. To be clear I am not ruling out legislation. In fact the Government is drafting legislation to implement the principles of the pay equity working group as we speak.Metiria Turei: When she said that businesses should do gender pay gap audits and publish the results why will she not make that happen with a simple law change?Hon PAULA BENNETT: Because I do not believe that the Government is the answer to everything and I believe that businesses that perhaps think that they do not have a gender pay gap should look at doing an audit and publish that if that is what they believe. But I think that we can educate. We can show them ways that they can close that gap. We can actually lead the way in the Public Service which is what we did by publishing our own data last year by department and that is what we stand for.Metiria Turei: Does the Minister agree with the Human Resources Institute's chief executive who said that "gender pay audits are absolutely the right thing for organisations to do"; if so will she now adopt the Green Party's bill that will make that happen?Hon PAULA BENNETT: To the first part of the question yes I do and I think that that certainly is to say we have done it within the Public Service. I think what it did was really point to areas that needed improvement and we are now able to put those processes in place. To the second one well that would be a decision for caucus. It will go to them in due course.Metiria Turei: Given that the pay-gender audits in the public sector have helped to close the gap by half a percent this year why will she not now make this change in the private sector so that all working women will benefit?Hon PAULA BENNETT: As I have stated already because I do not think that at this stage legislation is the answer. I think that publishing the data yesterday for the first time in 14 years actually gets the right information out there that has not been—because I think a lot of people think that there is not a gender pay gap and this research proves that there actually is. We have got ways that we can close it that are not legislative and that is what we are pushing to do.Metiria Turei: Given the law requires that she is paid the same as her male colleagues why will she not afford other New Zealand women that same legal protection from bias?Hon PAULA BENNETT: We have the Equal Pay Act and as such as you know they should not be discriminated against by gender. It is the same for them as it is for us in Parliament and that is what we expect of our businesses.David Seymour: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I seek your guidance in respect of Speaker's ruling 18/1 which refers to members wearing T-shirts and in particular T-shirts with motifs on them in the House such as Metiria Turei is currently wearing.Mr SPEAKER: Certainly I have not had a good look at the attire the member is wearing but it is a requirement that business attire is worn. I will watch it fairly carefully from now on.Metiria Turei: When the Minister knows that Māori women are paid 22 percent less and Pasifika women 26 percent less than men for the same work why will she not act to help these women get fair pay?Hon PAULA BENNETT: We are acting—and that is the joint working group principles that are now being turned into legislation. Through that though we made an announcement about a week ago that we would actually be using those principles to work through two other cases that are before us that actually do affect particularly Māori and Pasifika women who are in low-paid work. We are committed to seeing equity in that area. We have been working in good faith and I have confidence actually that those negotiations will come to conclusion at some stage.Rt Hon Winston Peters: If as the Minister says she is "fully equipped to kinda leap in and tackle" after 9 years exactly what has she done with the huge 47000 Public Service disparity under her administration and when will she stop blaming business and set an example herself?Mr SPEAKER: Order! There are two questions there. [Interruption] Order!Hon PAULA BENNETT: I am actually really pleased to have that question from the member. So what we have done is increased the number of women in senior leadership roles within the Public Service. That is now at 45 percent. So 45 percent of senior leadership roles within the Public Service are now filled by women. We have set up a diversity and senior leadership promotional so they know what the paths are and the career paths and how they can get those promotions. The number of chief executives is higher under this Government—female chief executives—than it has been under any Government ever and that is something that we are committed to. We have equally transparently put out there by department what the Public Service gender pay gap is. We have now done unconscious bias screening—Rt Hon Winston Peters: I raise a point of order Mr Speaker. I asked a specific question. It was a very long answer. The question—Mr SPEAKER: Order! [Interruption] Order! The member will resume his seat immediately. It was not a specific question; it was quite a long question and it has been addressed. [Interruption] Order!METIRIA TUREI: Now that she has said that pay equity is one of her main priorities does that mean she will finally make an offer in the pay negotiations to the 50000 women like Kristine Bartlett who are waiting for the Government for fair pay?Hon PAULA BENNETT: Actually those negotiations are confidential and the member would not know whether an offer had been made or not.Metiria Turei: I seek leave for Jan Logie's Equal Pay Amendment Bill to be set down as members' order of the day No. 1 on the next members' day.Mr SPEAKER: Leave is sought for that course of action. Is there any objection? There is objection."