In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,—

Nothing in this Act shall apply with respect to any employment agreement that fixes a rate of remuneration that is special to an employee by reason of special qualifications, experience, or other qualities possessed by that employee and does not involve any discrimination in relation to that employee or any other employee based on the sex of the employee.

Any term or expression used but not defined in this Act has the meaning given to it in the Employment Relations Act 2000.

The transitional, savings, and related provisions set out in Schedule 1 have effect according to their terms.

This Act binds the Crown.

An employer must ensure that—

No employer shall refuse or omit to offer or afford any person the same terms of employment, conditions of work, fringe benefits, and opportunities for training, promotion, and transfer as are made available for persons of the same or substantially similar qualifications employed in the same or substantially similar circumstances on work of that description by reason of the sex of that person.

Where the circumstances giving rise to an unlawful discrimination claim, an equal pay claim, or a pay equity claim by an employee are such that the employee would also be entitled to make a complaint under the Human Rights Act 1993, or pursue a personal grievance under the Employment Relations Act 2000, the employee may take 1, but not more than 1, of the following steps:

For the purposes of subsection (1)(a), an employee pursues a claim under this Act if,—

For the purposes of subsection (1)(b), an employee makes a complaint when proceedings in relation to that complaint are commenced by the complainant or the Human Rights Commission.

If an employee pursues a claim under this Act, the employee may not exercise or continue to exercise any rights in relation to the subject matter of that claim that the employee may have under the Human Rights Act 1993 or under the Employment Relations Act 2000.

If an employee makes a complaint referred to in subsection (1)(b), the employee may not exercise or continue to exercise any rights in relation to the subject matter of the complaint that the employee may have under this Act or under the Employment Relations Act 2000.

If an employee applies to the Authority for resolution of a personal grievance under the Employment Relations Act 2000, the employee may not exercise or continue to exercise any rights in relation to the subject matter of that personal grievance that the employee may have under this Act or under the Human Rights Act 1993.

In determining whether there exists an element of differentiation, based on the sex of the employees, in the rates of remuneration of male employees and female employees for any work, the following criteria shall apply:

The provisions in this Part do not apply to—

The court shall have power from time to time, of its own motion or on the application of any organisation of employers or employees, to state, for the guidance of parties in negotiations, the general principles to be observed to achieve equal pay in employment agreements.

Despite anything in the Employment Relations Act 2000, the court may, of its own motion or on the application of any party, examine the provisions of any proposed or existing collective agreement under that Act fixing any rate of remuneration of employees, whether or not those provisions have been agreed upon in conciliation, in order to determine whether the provisions of the proposed or existing collective agreement provide for equal pay.

After hearing the parties or, if the court thinks fit, without hearing the parties, the court may,—

Despite anything in any other Act or in any rule of law, the Employment Relations Authority may, of its own motion or on the application of an Inspector, examine the provisions of any employment agreement or proposed employment agreement (not being a collective agreement under the Employment Relations Act 2000) in order to determine whether the provisions of the employment agreement or proposed employment agreement fixing any rate of remuneration for employees provide for equal pay.

After hearing the parties to the employment agreement or proposed employment agreement or their representatives or, if the Employment Relations Authority thinks fit, without a hearing, the Employment Relations Authority may,—

The Employment Relations Authority must not exercise any of its powers under this section without a hearing if any party to the employment agreement or proposed employment agreement requests a hearing.

Without limiting any other power of the Employment Relations Authority, whether under this Act or otherwise, the Employment Relations Authority may—

Notwithstanding anything in any other Act, any claim for the recovery of any remuneration in excess of the amount fixed by any employment agreement and made on the ground that it is payable pursuant to the provisions of this Act may be made to the Employment Relations Authority as if it were a claim for the recovery of wages under section 131 of the Employment Relations Act 2000.

Without limiting the right of any employee to recover any remuneration payable otherwise than pursuant to this Act, no proceedings for the recovery of any remuneration in excess of the amount payable under any employment agreement, being an amount claimed on the ground that that excess is payable pursuant to this Act, shall be commenced in the Employment Relations Authority for the recovery of any such remuneration that became payable more than 6 years before the date of the commencement of the proceedings.

The purpose of this Part is to provide a process that facilitates the resolution of pay equity claims where there is evidence of systemic sex-based undervaluation of work that is predominantly performed by female employees.

In this Part, unless the context otherwise requires,—

The duty of good faith in section 4 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 applies to the parties to a pay equity claim, as if references in that section to a collective agreement were references to a pay equity claim settlement.

The duty of good faith in section 4 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 requires the parties to, at least,—

The duty of good faith in section 4 of the Employment Relations Act 2000, which applies to the relationship between a union and a member of the union, also applies to the relationship between a union and an employee who is not a member of the union if the employee is covered by the union-raised claim.

A union is entitled to raise a pay equity claim in accordance with sections 13DA and 13E on behalf of its members and to represent them in that claim.

A pay equity claim may be raised if—

The following may raise a pay equity claim with an employer:

A union may not raise a pay equity claim with an employer if no employee of the employer who performs the work to which the claim relates is a member of the union.

Subsection (2) does not limit a union’s right to jointly raise a multi-employer pay equity claim with another union, or to consolidate a claim raised with multiple employers in accordance with section 13N, provided each employer with whom the multi-employer claim is raised employs at least 1 employee who—

Despite subsection (1), a union may not raise a multi-employer pay equity claim with employers in respect of work performed by members of the union if—

A union that is prevented from raising a multi-employer pay equity claim by subsection (4) may raise 2 separate claims in respect of the work, as follows:

Despite subsection (1), a pay equity claim may not be raised within 10 years after the date of a pay equity claim settlement if the claim would relate to any or all of the employees covered by the settlement and the work to which the settlement relates, unless the Authority or the court determines, under section 13ZY(1)(b), that the claim may be raised.

Subsection (6)—

A pay equity claim has merit if—

The reasons for historical undervaluation of work referred to in subsection (1)(b)(i) are as follows:

The reasons for continued systemic sex-based undervaluation of work referred to in subsection (1)(b)(ii) are—

In subsection (3)(a), relevant labour market means that part of the whole labour market that comprises all workers who, as a matter of fact and commercial common sense, are substitutable because the work they perform involves—

Every pay equity claim must—

A pay equity claim raised by an individual employee—

A pay equity claim raised by a union or unions—

A union that raises a pay equity claim with an employer is not required to name the employees who perform the work to which the claim relates.

A pay equity claim raised by 1 or more unions with multiple employers must also include—

An employer who receives a pay equity claim from a claimant must, no later than 5 working days after receiving the claim,—

A notice to a union under subsection (1)(b) must—

If the claimant is an individual employee, the notice to a union under subsection (1)(b), and the attached copy of the pay equity claim, must not include the claimant’s name, their contact details, or any other information that identifies the claimant, unless the claimant has given written permission for those details to be shared.

This section applies if—

Subsection (2A) applies to each employer who—

Each employer must enter into a single multi-employer pay equity process agreement—

The multi-employer pay equity process agreement must set out—

If the employers cannot agree on a multi-employer pay equity process agreement, any of them may apply to the Authority for a direction.

An employer may opt out of a multi-employer pay equity claim by giving notice to all other parties.

If an employer opts out of a multi-employer pay equity claim, the claim in respect of that employer must be progressed as a separate claim.

Subsection (4) applies if 2 or more unions have jointly raised a claim with an employer, or have consolidated their claims raised with an employer (as required by section 13M), and the claim raised with the employer is part of a multi-employer pay equity claim.

The unions may opt out of the multi-employer pay equity claim raised with the employer by giving notice to all other parties only if—

If 2 or more unions jointly opt out of a multi-employer pay equity claim in respect of an employer under subsection (4), the unions’ joint claim in respect of that employer must be progressed as a separate claim.

A union may opt out of a multi-employer pay equity claim in respect of an employer only if—

If a union opts out of a multi-employer pay equity claim in respect of an employer under subsection (6), the union’s claim in respect of that employer must be progressed as a separate claim.

A notice opting out of a multi-employer pay equity claim may be given by an employer under subsection (1), by unions jointly under subsection (4), or by a single union under subsection (6), at any time before the claim is settled.

A notice opting out of a multi-employer pay equity claim—

A party may not apply to the Authority under section 13ZY for a determination concerning an employer’s decision under this section to opt out of a multi-employer claim.

This section applies if a union raises (or multiple unions jointly raise) a pay equity claim with an employer (the first claim) and, before that claim is settled, another union raises a pay equity claim (the subsequent claim) with the same employer in respect of work that is the same as, or substantially similar to, the work to which the first claim relates.

The unions must consolidate the claims.

The employer must, within 5 working days of receiving the subsequent claim, give notice to each union that has raised a claim with the employer of the requirement to consolidate.

If the unions cannot agree on how the consolidated claim will be progressed, any of them may apply to the Authority for a direction.

This section applies if 1 or more unions have raised a pay equity claim with 1 or more employers who have decided that the claim has merit (an existing claim).

If the union or unions that raised the existing claim subsequently raise a claim with another employer that relates to work that is the same as, or substantially similar to, the work covered by the existing claim and the other employer decides that the claim has merit (an additional employer), the claim raised with the additional employer may be consolidated with the existing claim only if the additional employer and all of the parties to the existing claim consent.

If 1 or more other unions subsequently raise a pay equity claim with 1 or more employers that relates to work that is the same as, or substantially similar to, the work covered by the existing claim (a new claim), and—

If the consent of all parties is not obtained to consolidate a claim raised with an additional employer or a new employer with an existing claim as required by subsection (2) or (3)(b), the union must progress the claim raised with the additional employer or the new employer separately.

This section applies to a request to consolidate a claim raised by a union with an additional employer (see section 13N(2)) or a new employer (see section 13N(3)(b)) with an existing pay equity claim.

A request to consolidate may be made by—

A request to consolidate may be made at any time before the first of the claims is settled.

A request to consolidate must be made in writing and must include—

This section applies if—

The parties to each of the claims that are to be consolidated must carry out the assessment required by section 13ZD.

The parties to each of the claims that are to be consolidated must select appropriate comparators as required by section 13ZE.

An employer who receives a pay equity claim must, as soon as is reasonably practicable after receiving it,—

The employer must make, and give notice of, those decisions in accordance with sections 13PB, 13Q, and 13S not later than—

This section is subject to sections 13PB(6) and 13ZZAA in the circumstances to which those provisions apply.

An employer who receives a pay equity claim must make a decision under this section before deciding, under section 13Q(1A), whether the claim has merit.

The employer must decide whether, in the employer’s view, the pay equity claim meets all requirements set out in section 13E.

Without limiting subsection (2), the employer must, in making the decision about a pay equity claim raised by 1 or more unions, consider and decide whether all of the employees covered by the claim perform work that is the same or substantially similar.

If an employer decides that, in the employer’s view, a pay equity claim does not meet all requirements set out in section 13E, the employer must, as soon as is reasonably practicable, give notice to the claimant that—

A notice under subsection (4) has the effect of discontinuing the pay equity claim from the date on which the employer gives the notice, but the discontinuance of the claim does not prevent—

If the parties agree to reverse the employer’s decision,—

This section applies to an employer who has—

The employer must decide whether, in the employer’s view, the pay equity claim has merit. (See section 13T for how this requirement applies to multi-employer pay equity claims.)

An employer’s decision that a pay equity claim has merit does not mean that—

The employer is deemed to have accepted that a pay equity claim has merit if the employer fails to give notice in accordance with section 13S by the time limit set out in section 13PA(2) (or, if applicable, by the time limit set out in section 13PB(6) or 13ZZAA).

Despite section 13PA(2)(a), an employer may, by notice to the claimant, extend the time limit for making and notifying the employer’s decisions under sections 13PB and 13Q if the employer has reasonable grounds for requiring the extension.

A notice extending the time limit may be given once only and must—

A notice extending the time limit must not extend the time limit by more than—

This section is subject to sections 13PB(6) and 13ZZAA in the circumstances to which those provisions apply.

This section applies to an employer who makes the decision required by section 13Q(1A) or who is deemed by section 13Q(4) to have accepted that a pay equity claim has merit.

An employer who decides that the claim has merit must—

An employer who decides that the claim does not have merit must give notice to the claimant that—

A notice under subsection (3) has the effect of discontinuing the pay equity claim from the date on which the employer gives the notice, but the discontinuance of the claim does not prevent—

If the parties agree to reverse the employer’s decision, the claim is no longer discontinued.

An employer must, as soon as is practicable after becoming aware that they have been deemed to have accepted that a pay equity claim has merit under section 13Q(4),—

Sections 13PA to 13S and 13V apply to employers who have entered a multi-employer pay equity process agreement in accordance with section 13K as follows:

If an employer decides that a pay equity claim raised by an individual employee in respect of work performed by the employee has merit, the employer must give notice of that claim to each affected employee.

Subsection (1) does not apply if a pay equity claim has already been raised with the employer in respect of work that is the same as, or substantially similar to, the work performed by the individual employee.

A notice to affected employees under subsection (1) must—

Despite subsection (3)(d), the employer may, by notice to the claimant, extend the time limit for notifying affected employees if the employer has reasonable grounds for requiring the extension.

A notice extending the time limit must not extend the time limit by more than 25 working days, and must—

If an employer decides that a pay equity claim raised by 1 or more unions in respect of work performed by 1 or more of the employer’s employees has merit, the employer must give notice of that claim to each affected employee.

Subsection (1) does not apply to a subsequent claim raised by another union to which section 13M applies.

A notice to affected employees under subsection (1) must—

Despite subsection (3)(d), the employer may, by notice to the claimant, extend the time limit for notifying affected employees if the employer has reasonable grounds for requiring the extension.

A notice extending the time limit must not extend the time limit by more than 25 working days, and must—

If a union raises a pay equity claim with an employer, every employee of the employer who performs work that is the same as, or substantially similar to, the work to which the claim relates is covered by the union-raised claim on and from the date specified in subsection (2).

The date is—

Subsection (1) does not apply to an employee who—

This section overrides section 236(1) and (3) of the Employment Relations Act 2000.

A union may not require an employee who is not a member of the union, but who is covered by a union-raised claim, to pay a fee to the union to be covered by the union-raised claim or to have the benefit of the settlement of the claim offered to them.

Subsection (1) does not prevent a union from requesting a voluntary contribution towards the costs of bargaining a pay equity claim from an employee who is not a member of the union and who is covered by the union-raised claim.

An employee who is covered by a union-raised claim and is not a member of the union (or of any of the unions) that raised the claim may opt out by giving notice in writing—

A notice opting out must be given before the earlier of—

An employee who is a member of the union may not opt out of a claim raised by the union with the employee’s employer while remaining a member of the union (but may cancel membership of the union and then opt out).

This section applies if—

The employer must provide the union or unions with the following information about each employee who is covered by the union-raised claim:

The employer must provide the information in subsection (2) to the union or unions as soon as is reasonably practicable after the date that is 20 working days after the date of the notice under section 13V(1).

This section applies if—

The employer must give notice of the pay equity claim to the new employee as soon as practicable and no later than 20 working days after the new employee commences employment.

The notice must—

If the new employee does not opt out by giving the employer notice in writing under section 13Y within 20 working days of the date of the notice under subsection (2), the employer must give notice to the union or unions of the name of the new employee and the employee’s contact details for the provision of written information.

Sections 13ZC to 13ZZC apply to a pay equity claim if—

The parties to a pay equity claim must provide to each other, on request, information that is reasonably necessary to support or substantiate claims or responses to claims made for the purposes of the bargaining.

A request by a party to another party for information must—

A party who receives an information request may provide the information to an independent reviewer, instead of to the requesting party, if the party reasonably considers that the information requested should be treated as confidential information.

If information is provided to an independent reviewer, section 34(4) to (9) of the Employment Relations Act 2000 applies as if references in those provisions to the union and employer were references to the parties.

The parties to a pay equity claim must assess all matters set out in subsection (2)—

The matters to be assessed are as follows:

In making the assessments, the parties must—

This section sets out how parties select appropriate comparators against which to assess a pay equity claim under section 13ZD.

The parties to a pay equity claim involving 1 employer must select comparators that are most closely related to the employer by approaching the task as follows:

The parties to a multi-employer pay equity claim must select comparators that are most closely related to the employers by approaching the task as follows:

In addition to acting in accordance with subsection (2) or (3) (as applicable), the parties may, by agreement, select as a comparator the employees covered by a pay equity claim that has previously (but not before the Equal Pay Amendment Act 2025 comes into force) been raised and been the subject of a pay equity claim settlement.

A comparator selected under subsection (2) or (3) (as applicable) must be a male workforce that performs—

Despite subsections (2) and (3), the parties may not select a comparator if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the work performed by that comparator—

Despite subsections (2) to (4), the parties may not select as a comparator a workforce that is too small to allow a meaningful comparison between its work and the work to which the claim relates.

When selecting comparators, the parties must take into account any additional matters prescribed by regulations.

If the employer decides that no appropriate comparators are available for selection, the employer must give notice to the claimant that—

A notice under subsection (1) has the effect of discontinuing the pay equity claim from the date on which the employer gives the notice, but the discontinuance of the claim does not prevent—

If the parties agree to reverse the employer’s decision, the claim is no longer discontinued.

An employer who is making an assessment under section 13ZD of a pay equity claim raised by 1 or more unions on behalf of 2 or more of the employer’s employees may decide that, in the employer’s view, the employees covered by the claim do not all perform work that is the same or substantially similar.

An employer—

An employer who makes a decision under subsection (1) must give notice to the claimant that—

The employer may give notice under this section—

A notice under subsection (3) has the effect of discontinuing the pay equity claim from the date on which the employer gives the notice, but the discontinuance of the claim does not prevent—

If the parties agree to reverse the employer’s decision, the claim is no longer discontinued.

This section applies to—

The union must establish a process for proposed settlement employees to vote on whether to approve or decline a proposed pay equity claim settlement.

The union must, before the process begins, give notice of the process to—

The process must ensure that—

A union may not enter into a pay equity claim settlement unless—

The obligations in section 63A of the Employment Relations Act 2000 apply to pay equity bargaining only if—

If subsection (1) applies, the obligations in section 63A of the Employment Relations Act 2000 apply as if references in that section to an intended agreement were references to a proposed pay equity claim settlement.

A pay equity claim is settled—

A pay equity claim settlement may also include terms and conditions of employment other than remuneration, if the parties agree, but an employer may not reduce any terms and conditions of employment of an employee who has raised a pay equity claim or who is covered by a union-raised claim for the purpose of settling that claim.

The parties may not agree to review, or agree on a process for the review of, a pay equity claim settlement.

A pay equity claim settlement agreed between the parties must—

Settlement of a multi-employer pay equity claim must be recorded in a single multi-employer pay equity claim settlement that is signed by each union and each employer who is a party to the claim at the time of the settlement.

Settlement of a pay equity claim raised by multiple unions with a single employer must be recorded in a single pay equity claim settlement that is signed by the employer and by each union that is a party to the claim at the time of the settlement.

Bargaining for a pay equity claim settlement is unfair if—

The circumstances are that the employee, at the time of bargaining for or entering into the pay equity claim settlement,—

In this section, pay equity claim settlement includes a term or condition of a pay equity claim settlement.

Except as provided in this section, an employee must not challenge or question a pay equity claim settlement on the ground that it is unfair or unconscionable.

If an employer or employer’s representative is found to have bargained unfairly under section 13ZI, the Authority may do 1 or more of the following things:

The Authority must not make an order under subsection (1)(b) unless the requirements in section 164 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 have been met, and that section applies accordingly with all necessary modifications.

This section applies if a pay equity claim settlement is reached (whether that settlement is reached by the parties recording an agreement in writing as described in section 13ZH(3) or by the Authority or the court making a determination described in section 13ZH(1)(b)(ii) or (iii)).

Each employer who is a party to a pay equity claim settlement must ensure that, as soon as practicable after the settlement is reached, a copy of the settlement agreement or determination (as applicable) is delivered to the chief executive of the department of State that is responsible for the administration of this Act.

The copy of the settlement delivered to the chief executive must include any document referred to, or incorporated by reference, in the settlement, unless the document is publicly available.

The information contained in the copies of pay equity claim settlements delivered to the chief executive under subsection (2) may not be used by the chief executive for purposes other than statistical or analytical purposes.

In this section, offered the benefit of a settlement, in the case of an employee, means that the employee is—

An employer who is a party to a pay equity claim settlement with a union must offer the benefit of that settlement to each employee of the employer who, on the date of the settlement,—

The offer of the benefit of the settlement under subsection (2) must be made as soon as is reasonably practicable after the date of the settlement of the union-raised claim.

An employer who is a party to a pay equity claim settlement with an individual employee may offer the benefit of that settlement to 1 or more other employees who, on the date of the settlement,—

An employer who is a party to a pay equity claim settlement with a union must offer the benefit of that settlement to each new employee who, after the date of the settlement, is employed to perform the same, or substantially similar, work as the work to which the pay equity claim settlement relates.

The offer of the benefit of the settlement under subsection (5) must be made at the same time as the offer of employment.

An employer who is a party to a pay equity claim settlement with an individual employee may offer the same remuneration and other terms and conditions of employment agreed in that settlement to a new employee, but that offer is not an offer of the benefit of a settlement for the purposes of this Act.

Nothing in this section prevents an employer and an employee from agreeing to a term or condition of employment in an employment agreement that is more favourable to the employee than the terms and conditions of employment in a pay equity claim settlement.

A pay equity claim settlement binds—

The employment agreement (whether individual or collective) of an employee who is covered by a pay equity claim settlement is deemed to be varied to—

The variation referred to in subsection (2) is effective from—

A pay equity claim settlement that contains a term or condition that excludes, restricts, or reduces an employee’s entitlements under the employee’s employment agreement has no effect to the extent that it does so.

Nothing in this Act prevents an employer and an employee from agreeing to a term or condition of employment in an employment agreement that is more favourable to the employee than the terms and conditions of employment in a pay equity claim settlement.

The entry into a collective agreement in accordance with the collective bargaining provisions of the Employment Relations Act 2000 by an employer and a union does not settle or extinguish an unsettled pay equity claim to which the employer is a party.

The existence of an unsettled pay equity claim between an employer and an employee is not a genuine reason for failing to conclude collective bargaining between that employer and a union representing the employer’s employees for the purposes of section 33 of the Employment Relations Act 2000.

Any party to a pay equity claim may refer any 1 or more issues relating to that claim to mediation services provided under Part 10 of the Employment Relations Act 2000.

Issues that may be referred to mediation services include, but are not limited to, the following:

If an issue relating to a pay equity claim is referred to mediation services, sections 145 to 154 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 apply, with all necessary modifications.

The purpose of sections 13ZQ to 13ZX is to provide a process that enables 1 or more parties to a pay equity claim who are having difficulties in resolving that claim to seek the assistance of the Authority in resolving the difficulties.

Sections 13ZQ to 13ZX do not—

Any party to a pay equity claim may refer any 1 or more issues relating to that claim to the Authority for facilitation to assist in resolving the claim.

Issues that may be referred to the Authority include, but are not limited to, the following:

A referral of the issue described in subsection (2)(c) includes the issue of the phases in which any recommended remuneration is to be increased (see section 13ZW(1A)).

Despite subsections (1) and (2), a dispute as to whether a pay equity claim has merit may only be referred to the Authority for facilitation if all of the parties to the claim agree to refer it.

A reference for facilitation must be made on 1 or both of the grounds specified in section 13ZR(2).

The Authority must not accept a reference for facilitation unless—

The grounds are—

The Authority must not accept a reference for facilitation in relation to a pay equity claim for which the Authority has already acted as a facilitator unless—

A member of the Authority who facilitates resolution of an issue relating to a pay equity claim must not be the member of the Authority who accepted the reference for facilitation.

The process to be followed during facilitation—

During facilitation, any pay equity bargaining in respect of the claim to which the facilitation relates continues subject to the process determined by the Authority.

During facilitation, the Authority—

The provision of facilitation by the Authority may not be challenged or called in question in any proceedings on the ground—

A statement made by a party for the purposes of facilitation is not admissible against the party in proceedings under this Act or under the Employment Relations Act 2000.

A party may make a public statement about facilitation only if—

A proposal made by a party or a position reached by parties to a pay equity claim during facilitation is not binding on a party after facilitation has come to an end.

This section—

While assisting parties to resolve an issue related to a pay equity claim, the Authority may make a recommendation about any matter that relates to the pay equity claim, including, but not limited to, recommendations as to the following:

If the Authority makes a recommendation under subsection (1)(c), it must also specify that remuneration is to be increased in 3 annual phases of equal amounts or proportions starting at the date of the pay equity claim settlement (see section 13ZQ(2A)).

If the Authority is making a recommendation under subsection (1)(d), it must take into account the matters set out in section 13ZY(7).