The Equal Pay Amendment Act was enacted on 6 May 2025 and cancelled all existing Pay Equity claims.

Equal Pay is a human right and the new law will make it harder for workers to correct sex-based discrimination through the pay equity process.

Pay equity claims now need to be refiled under the new law, however, changes mean that unions are extremely concerned that the process, which was already extremely difficult, may become impossible.

Prior to the new Equal Pay Act Amendments (May 2025), NZNO had raised 12 pay equity claims lodged on behalf of workers in:

• Care & Support (3 claims)
• Aged Care Nurses
• Plunket Nurses
• Plunket Admin
• Primary Practice + Urgent Care Centres
• Primary Practice + Urgent Care Centres Admin / Med Receptionists
• Hospices
• Access, Total Home Care, HealthCare NZ, Nurse Maude
• Sexual Wellbeing Aotearoa
• Awanui/Labtests

In addition, the historic the Pay Equity Settlement for Te Whatu Ora employed nurses and healthcare assistants achieved in 2023 review process had been initiated.

We had also been working on raising a pay equity claim with the Māori and Iwi providers and were due to meet with them to discuss how the process could work.