‘Pay transparency’ bill survives its first reading

The Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Bill (‘the Bill’) has survived its first reading and will now go to Select Committee. The Bill, if enacted, would protect employees from being subject to ‘adverse conduct’ for discussing and / or disclosing their remuneration to others

The Bill proposes to add a personal grievance to s 103 Employment Relations Act 2000 (‘the Act‘) if an employer has engaged in ‘adverse conduct’ for a ‘remuneration disclosure reason’.

Essentially what this would mean is that if an employer dismissed or disadvantaged an employee because they had inquired about another employee’s remuneration, discussed remuneration with another employee, or disclosed their remuneration to any other person, the employee would have a personal grievance.

The Bill, introduced into Parliament by MP Camilla Belich, received support from the National Party, the Green Party, and Te Pāti Māori at its first reading. Act and New Zealand First did not support the Bill, but it will nonetheless progress to Select Committee.

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