Closing the gender pay gap typically relies on addressing all of these elements. Equal pay for equal work will typically not close the overall gender gap especially if genders are not equally represented at each level of the organisation.
Overall, our average gender pay gap is 7.6% (median is 5.6%) as of 1 March 2024. As illustrated by the different outcomes amongst our business units (see below graph), greater parity, particularly at the senior levels, leads to a lower gender pay gap, with different business units at varying levels of parity. In terms Deloitte New Zealand’s approach:
- Maintaining gender pay equity is a non-negotiable and is being achieved. It is formally reviewed six monthly as part of our performance cycle by our Management Group and Board (locally and regionally).
- Closing the gender pay gap is also a non-negotiable for us. It requires resolving many issues including historical norms such as occupational segregation (i.e. where traditionally there is a predominance of a given gender for a particular type of work, like technology areas which, while it is changing, are more male dominated as is the case in our Consulting business) and addressing the parenting penalty women face by enabling more men to participate in shared care and ensuring equity of opportunity at all stages of the career.
Some of our initiatives that look to address these issues and achieve gender parity include:
- Our parental leave policy that provides eight weeks paid leave for secondary carers
- Ensuring gender balanced short lists at each stage of the recruitment process
- Constantly reviewing, reporting and acting on our DEI metrics to ensure that we maintain our broadly equal gender representation at all levels with consideration given to promotions, lateral hires and retention
You can read more about what we are doing to manage our gender pay gap here.