More Kiwis Oppose Than Support Government's Pay Equity Changes, New Poll Shows
The latest RNZ Reid Research survey found 43.2 percent of respondents were against the overhaul, compared to just 25.5 percent in favour. Nearly a third - 31.3 percent - remained unsure.
On the question of consultation, 68 percent said the government should have first sought feedback, with only 18.6 percent saying no. The remainder - 13.4 percent - were undecided.
That opinion carried through to voters' party preferences, with even a slim majority of ACT voters agreeing that there should have been consultation, despite the changes being championed by Workplace Relations Minister and ACT deputy leader Brooke van Velden.
The poll also indicated limited public comprehension: just 49.7 percent said they understood the changes, 38.2 percent admitted they did not, and a further 12.1 percent were unsure.
More than half of those who claimed a lacked of understanding still expressed an opinion about the policy: 38 percent said they opposed it and 13 percent said they supported it.
Respondents were surveyed from 23 May through to 30 May, capturing the immediate reaction to last month's Budget and the $12.8 billion of savings made from the coalition's pay equity pivot.
Van Velden had announced the overhaul several weeks earlier, before passing legislation through all stages under urgency.
Among the key changes: a new merit test was introduced, as well as a greater focus on whether employers could afford higher wages. The threshold to lodge a claim was lifted, and job comparisons across different industries were restricted.
Along with the changes, the coalition also extinguished the 33 claims already being considered under the previous scheme.
The government argues the regime had expanded beyond its remit, becoming too costly and confusing. The opposition parties and unions says the changes will make it harder for those in female-dominated sectors to achieve fair pay.
The RNZ Reid Research result follows a similar question asked in the latest 1News Verian Poll, released on Tuesday. It found 45 percent opposed the pay equity changes, compared to 39 percent in support, and 16 percent who did not know or wouldn't say.
Speaking to RNZ, van Velden said she had received mixed feedback but believed the community now recognised that the changes were necessary.
"It's always going to be a difficult conversation," she said. "We have fixed resources, we have to make those difficult decisions on behalf of New Zealanders."
And Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told RNZ he would not do anything differently if given the chance again.
"We made some pretty tough decisions to go through under urgency. But we had to fix a very unworkable and unaffordable law. It had got completely out of whack."
Finance Minister Nicola Willis suggested some of the public opposition or lack of understanding could have been driven by Labour promoting "misinformation".
"Labour have had a very confused position, and their hyperbole in claiming that we were ending equal pay has ultimately done a disservice to them and the people they're seeking to represent, because it's basically untrue."
But Labour leader Chris Hipkins said that was sheer desperation.
"Women up and down the country have a right to feel angry," Hipkins said.
"The government cut billions of dollars that was otherwise going to be going into low paid women's pay packets, and now they're just desperately trying to deflect attention away from that."
The latest RNZ Reid Research poll showed National and ACT losing support, and without the numbers - even with NZ First - to form a government.
ACT leader David Seymour said he did not put much stock in any one poll but acknowledged the recent pay equity changes could be on some voters' minds.
"Doing what is right is what is politically popular in the long term, and even if I'm wrong about that, good policy is worth it anyway.
"We have left New Zealand with a more sensible pay equity regime focused on actual gender-based discrimination, and I think that's worth it."
This poll of 1008 people was conducted by Reid Research, using quota sampling and weighting to ensure representative cross section by age, gender and geography. The poll was conducted through online interviews between 23-30 May 2025 and has a maximum margin of error of +/- 3.1 percent at a 95 percent confidence level. The report is available here.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scoop
3 hours ago
- Scoop
OCR Cut Welcome For Some While Govt Leaves Many Behind
Poverty and homelessness continue to grow because of this Government's decisions, despite the Reserve Bank's move to lower the Official Cash Rate (OCR). 'The Reserve Bank's decision to lower interest rates today will be welcome news for some but won't help the thousands this Government has pushed into homelessness and poverty,' says Green Party co-leader and spokesperson for Finance Chlöe Swarbrick. 'Monetary policy is a blunt instrument. It is fiscal policy - that is, the Government's choices on tax and spend - which dictates who wins and who loses in our economy. 'While the OCR cut will provide some relief for those with a mortgage, the number of New Zealanders left out in the cold continues to grow under Luxon's decisions. Reports out today show families being forced to choose between unsafe boarding houses, or living on the street. 'Cuts to the OCR do not end poverty or homelessness, nor arrest growing inequality. The Government knows it can take action to address these problems, but is instead choosing to make them worse. 'While this Government tells people they're making the 'hard choices' to push more kids into poverty and increase emissions, the Greens will continue to fight for an Aotearoa where everyone thrives and nobody is left behind,' says Chlöe Swarbrick.
Techday NZ
6 hours ago
- Techday NZ
Seventy-two percent of New Zealanders say brands break promises
Nearly three-quarters of New Zealand consumers believe companies are not living up to the promises they make, according to a new study from Accenture Song. The Brand Experience Gap study, now in its second year, surveyed 1,527 New Zealanders and reviewed 65 brands across six sectors. The findings indicate that 72% of respondents feel brands are failing to deliver on their commitments, marking a slight increase from the previous year's figure of 71%. Financial services providers were rated as the best performing sector, with an experience gap of 63%, meaning that 63% of customers do not think their primary provider fulfils its promises. On the other end of the spectrum, media and entertainment firms - including content streaming services - had the largest experience gap at 79%. Consumer expectations Consumers identified specific areas where brands are falling short. In the financial services sector, 33% of respondents cited the need for more reasonable fees and interest rates as a key area for improvement. For media and entertainment, 81% wanted more control over how they manage and customise content, while 78% said content needs to be refreshed more regularly to avoid becoming repetitive or stale. Across all sectors, the three most significant shortfalls were consumers not feeling valued or recognised by brands (79%), perceptions that brands are not making a positive social contribution (78%), and a lack of up-to-date technology to make interactions more convenient (77%). Other industries assessed The study also measured the experience gap for other sectors in New Zealand. General insurance brands were found to have a gap of 71%, telecommunications providers 72%, utilities 68%, and travel and tourism 76%. With the experience gap persisting across most industries, Storm Day, NZ Lead at Accenture Song, commented on the growing expectations of New Zealand consumers: "Customers are demanding more from the brands they deal with, and rightly so. In an increasingly complex business environment, companies simply can't afford to promise what they can't deliver. Again in 2025, we're seeing a stubbornly high experience gap among brands in New Zealand. But this gap comes with an opportunity, as closing it is one of the best ways to build long-term customer trust." "The key is to treat customer experience as a purpose-led growth driver, not just a budget line item. Sectors like financial services are holding steady because they've invested in owning the customer experience, along with the systems and strategies to support it." "It's also important to remember that your brand doesn't exist in a vacuum. You might be closing gaps, but if your competitors are closing them faster, people notice that. Customers' experiences are framed by all the organisations they deal with, not just those in your sector. That's crucial, because customers don't always complain – they simply don't come back. They disappear silently, often to your competitors." "By harnessing smart technologies like generative AI to deliver genuine organisational purpose, we're on a mission to turn intent into action – and close the gap," said Day. Research methodology The Brand Experience Gap study measures the difference between what brands publicly promise and what their actual customers report experiencing. Respondents were asked about universal brand values - such as simplicity, ease of dealing with a company, and feeling valued - and sector-specific aspects like fraud protection in financial services. Results reflect the proportion of customers in each sector who feel there is a gap between a company's stated intentions and delivered outcomes. The report highlights a consistent challenge for New Zealand brands across industries: the need to improve how customers feel recognised, how technology is leveraged, and how brands contribute to society in order to rebuild trust and loyalty. Follow us on: Share on:
Scoop
7 hours ago
- Scoop
Rotorua Lakes Council Calls For Fair Share Of Online Gambling Profits
Rotorua Lakes Council wants communities to get a share of the profits under the Government's Online Casino Gambling Bill. The controversial bill has sparked concerns from sporting organisations, who fear it will impact existing funding models. However, the minister presenting the bill has argued there is little evidence to support the case and warned that community funding provisions could do more harm than good. New Zealanders can currently gamble on offshore websites, but it is largely unregulated. The proposed bill, which passed its first reading in July, aims to regulate offshore online casino gambling and license up to 15 international operators. At present, the bill offers no obligation for operators to provide community funding. In its submission on Friday, Rotorua Lakes Council urged the select committee to consider adding a policy requiring a percentage of profit to be returned to communities. The council also wanted a proposed 12% online gambling duty to be reinvested into local problem gambling. 'It is only right that where possible, profits generated from gambling [are] reinvested into local communities through initiatives that aim to uplift and provide long-lasting change,' the council submission said. The submission also raised significant concerns around online and social media advertising and its impact on younger and inexperienced gamblers. At present, proceeds from Class 4 gaming machines, or pokies, are managed by community gaming trusts. Legislation requires they return at least 40% of net proceeds into the community in the form of grants, with more than $300 million distributed annually to community groups, including those involved in sport, education, health and the arts. Sporting organisations believe they are particularly vulnerable to the new bill, with gaming trust funding playing a huge role in grassroots activity. Last year, sport was by far the leading recipient of such grants in Rotorua, receiving $3.25m of the $7.4m available – more than double the next highest category received. Regional sport trust Sport Bay of Plenty received nearly $360,000 in grants from the Lion Foundation and the New Zealand Community Trust in the 2024 financial year. The trust is one of more than 50 sporting organisations nationwide that have formed a 'collective sport voice' urging the Government to ensure online casino profits return to communities. Sport Bay of Plenty said the organisation opposes the current form of the bill, which 'fails to uphold the long-standing principle that gambling profits should benefit the community'. It highlighted that roughly half of the funding from sport grants goes to clubs, covering expenses such as equipment, uniforms and coaching, with none going to high performance. Sport Bay of Plenty would not comment on the ethical concerns raised regarding gambling money largely funding community sport. A 2020 white paper by the Problem Gambling Foundation, Hāpai te Hauora and the Salvation Army warned that the current model is ethically and financially unstable, with funds disproportionately sourced from vulnerable, problem-gambling populations in deprived areas. Internal Affairs Minister Brooke van Velden expressed concern this week in Parliament over repeating the same model with online gambling. 'When community groups are reliant on funding from the proceeds of gambling, there is an incentive to increase gambling in order to increase revenue for those organisations,' van Velden said. The Department of Internal Affairs had advised the minister that this model would make it harder to reduce gambling, because 'community organisations are dependent on the funding that they receive'. Van Velden also said there is 'no evidence' that regulation of online gambling will reduce the current funding pool, but remained 'open' to the idea of community returns. She will meet representatives from the sporting community this week. Rotorua has 24 Class 4 venues. This is higher than the national average by population proportion. The current Class 4 and TAB venue policy caps gaming machines at 350, but that is currently exceeded with 362, with 74% of pokies in the district's poorest areas. Annual gambling losses in Rotorua exceed $26m and in 2022-23, 5.33% of gambling interventions were in Rotorua, ranking third nationwide, above Wellington, Hamilton and Tauranga. Rotorua Mayor Tania Tapsell supported the council's submission but previously admitted deep concerns from the community 'around the morals' of the current model. 'Even though it benefits the community, we know it is being collected by an activity that causes significant harm in our community,' Tapsell said in a council meeting in late July. Submissions for the Online Casino Gambling Bill closed on Sunday, with a subsequent report due in November. Note: Mathew Nash was previously employed as communications manager at Sport Bay of Plenty.
