Protestors have taken part in marches and rallies throughout the country today in opposition to the Government’s changes to pay equity laws.
Earlier this year, the Pay Equity Amendment Bill passed through all stages in Parliament under urgency.
The controversial legislation raise the threshold for proving work has been historically undervalued when making a pay equity claim.
Opponents said at the time it will make it harder for women in female dominated industries to make a claim.
Today, more than 20 events organised by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions (NZCTU) were held across the country under the banner of the “Women’s Day of Action for Pay Equity”.
It coincided with a historic date in women’s rights – 132 years after women secured the right to vote in Aotearoa.
One attendee in Auckland described the march as having “a really great turnout”.
“Lots of people expressing that this Government has to go in the next election,” they told 1News.
NZCTU Secretary Melissa Ansell-Bridges said the Government had cancelled pay equity claims that would have “eased the cost of living and lifted pay for more than 180,000 people”.
“These are the people who provide the services that make life possible, such as schools, libraries, hospitals, aged care, and disability support,” she said.
She asserted the march’s intention as being to “make it clear that pay equity will be a central issue at the next election”.
“No Government can dismantle pay equity — we have won it before, and we will win it again”.
Simultaneously today, around 1000 women gathered at Auckland’s Viaduct Event Centre as part of the twelfth annual Girls in Business Conference.
The event featured multiple speakers, a fashion show, networking opportunities and an awards ceremony.
Fashion Designer Kathryn Wilson was in attendance and surmised “women can do anything”.
Ansell-Bridges said this was “more than a protest — it is a celebration of the women who nurture, lead, and resist”.
“It honours the suffrage legacy and amplifies our collective power to shape the future.”
In a statement to 1News, police said it was “aware of the march” and that there were “no incidents/issues to report on our end”.