When you put a group of women in a room and ask them about issues like how much women are paid in comparison to men, it’s not long before someone shares a story about being paid less than a man for the same job. If she didn’t experience it herself, she knows and cares about another woman who did.
In this video, celebrities and social influencers Matilda Rice, Antonia Prebble, Makaia Carr, Sam Hayes and business woman Cecilia Robinson open up about gender pay gap scenarios they’ve experienced or know of.
Matilda Rice has a friend who really struggled with the fact a former male colleague was being paid significantly more than her, even though he had less experience than her.
Antonia Prebble revealed that in the acting industry men earn more than women because they’re said to pull in more money at the box office. She now questions why she once accepted that.
Founder of My Food Bag, Cecilia Robinson, can’t fathom why more NZ companies are not paying staff based on talent, not gender.
Many women feel uncomfortable raising the issue of pay with employers – but perhaps we need to get more comfortable about doing that, says social influencer Makaia Carr.
Watch their emotional reactions to the stats that show just how big the gender pay gap is in New Zealand, here:
NEXT magazine has launched a campaign that is hugely significant for all working women in New Zealand – the Close the Pay Gap campaign.
Studies have found that when men and women contributed the same value to their firms, women were paid less than men, on average. Even more disheartening is the fact that the older we get, the wider the gap grows.
In 2017, the World Economic Forum reported that it would take 217 years to close the workplace gender pay gap.
Who will you talk to today about closing the gap?
We’ve had a lot of interest from NEXT readers wanting to purchase the gorgeous T-shirts the celebrities wear in the video and magazine story. These T-shirts, which feature a camellia (a symbol of the suffragette movement) are available for purchase at $40 each in silver or gold. Just visit magshop.co.nz/next-magazine-closethegap to make your online purchase.
