If you want to develop your listening skills, try these tasks as you listen to the text. The answers are at the bottom of this page, after the Vocabulary. Thanks to Natasha Groves for preparing the tasks.
If you want to listen and read, just scroll down to the text.
1. Listening for main ideas
First, just listen to the text, taking notes if you wish. What information can you catch during this first listening?
2. Now listen again and answer the following questions:
- What did the government do last week?
- What is pay equity?
- What is equal pay?
- What happened in 2020? Why?
- According to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, why should pay equity legislation be changed?
- What happens when a bill is passed under urgency?
- How have many people and groups reacted to this change?
- Why are many people angry?
Text
Last week the government changed the pay equity law, which means that all groups who have been working on claims for pay equity need to start new ones under different criteria.
According to the Ministry for Women, pay equity means that women and men are paid the same for work that is different but that has the same or a similar level of skill, responsibility, and effort. It is slightly different from equal pay, which means that women and men are paid the same for the same work. In 2020, the Equal Pay Act was amended to make the process more accessible, as claims no longer had to go through the courts. Claims could also compare jobs in different sectors but went through a careful process of analysis with employers, employees and unions working together. At the time, the National Party was not in the government, but their Members of Parliament supported this change.
However, last Tuesday, 6 May, the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, Brooke van Velden (from the ACT Party), announced that new legislation was going to be introduced to Parliament to change that pay equity law. She argued that the changes in 2020 had created problems because some claims did not have strong evidence of lower pay based on gender-based discrimination. The leader of the ACT Party, David Seymour, said that Ms van Velden has saved the government billions of dollars, and even saved the Budget for the government. In contrast, the Minister of Finance, Nicola Willis (from National), stated that the change was not because of the Budget. Instead, she said other factors had entered bargaining for claims which were perhaps not directly related to gender-based discrimination.
The new legislation, the Pay Equity Amendment Bill, was passed under urgency in Parliament on Tuesday and Wednesday. ‘Under urgency’ means that a bill passes through all three stages without going to a select committee. That means that Parliament does not have as much time to debate the bill, and the public has no chance to make submissions.
Many people and groups are shocked and angry about this change. The day the new law was announced, union members affected by the change protested outside Parliament and were joined by several members of Opposition parties. On Friday, there were protests outside the offices of some government ministers, including Brooke van Velden’s office in Auckland, and the Minister for Women Nicola Grigg’s office in Christchurch.
One reason that many are angry is that 33 pay equity claims which were in progress have been dropped. These include claims for hundreds of thousands of teachers, librarians, and nurses which have been worked on for a few years already. They can start again but under new criteria, which will only involve comparisons between female and male employees at the same employer or a similar employer. Unions say that this will make it harder to prove that workers in female-dominated sectors are underpaid. Another reason that many are angry is that the change was made without warning or consultation. The government ministers say that they respect women and believe in pay equity, but many women now find that hard to believe.
Vocabulary
criteria – a standard that is used to judge something or to make a decision about something
amend – to change a law or document slightly, in order to correct a mistake or to improve it
accessible – easy to obtain or use
sector – a part of an area of activity, especially of a country’s economy, for example, the tourism sector, the banking sector
legislation – a law or set of laws
Budget – an official statement from the government about how much income it has and how much it will spend
discrimination – the practice of treating someone or a particular group in society less fairly than others
Select Committee – a group of Members of Parliament who are responsible for looking at an area of government activity
make a submission (to a Select Committee) – give an opinion and recommendation on a bill protest – to come together in public to express disagreement or opposition to something. Also a noun, a protest
Answers
a. What did the government do last week?
They changed the pay equity law.
b. What is pay equity?
It means that women and men are paid the same for work that is different but that has the same or a similar level of skill, responsibility, and effort.
c. What is equal pay?
It means that women and men are paid the same for the same work.
d. What happened in 2020? Why?
The Equal Pay Act was amended. This made the process more accessible, as claims no longer had to go through the courts; claims could also compare jobs in different sectors.
e. According to the Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety, why should pay equity legislation be changed?
The changes in 2020 had created problems because some claims did not have strong evidence of lower pay based on gender-based discrimination.
f. What happens when a bill is passed under urgency?
It passes through all three stages without going to a select committee, meaning that Parliament does not have as much time to debate the bill, and the public has no chance to make submissions.
g. How have many people and groups reacted to this change?
Many are shocked and angry. There have been protests outside the offices of some government ministers.
h. Why are many people angry?
33 pay equity claims which were in progress have been dropped; the new criteria will make it harder to prove that workers in female-dominated sectors are underpaid; the change was made without warning or consultation.