The Pacific Pay Gap is reflected in the economic disparities experienced by Pacific peoples relative to non-Pacific peoples. Over the course of a lifetime, unchanged pay gaps can amount to large cumulative differences. On average, in 2021, Pacific men earned $19,500 less annually compared to Pākehā men. Over the course of a lifetime, Pacific men earn $364,786 less than Pākehā men. In 2021, Pacific women earn, on average, $24,671 less than Pākehā men annually. Over the course of a lifetime, this accumulates to $488,310 difference in lifetime earnings. Recent research reveals that working households with at least one adult of Pacific ethnicity experience the highest poverty rate (at 9.5 percent) compared to Pākehā households (at 5.9 percent).14 This shows the need for further Government and private sector action to encourage equality in employment for Pacific Peoples in Aotearoa New Zealand. Our Inquiry focused on the Pacific Pay Gap In response to insights from the Talanoa report and consistent sets of data showing a significant pay gap between Pacific men and women and Pākehā men, the Commission launched a national Inquiry into the opportunities for closing the pay gap for Pacific peoples working in the private sector. The Inquiry focuses on the experience of Pacific peoples as a matter of urgency, as they experience the largest pay gaps compared to other ethnic groups. We note that Māori women also experience significant pay gaps. The Waitangi Tribunal is inquiring into the systemic discrimination, deprivation and inequities experienced associated with the alleged denial of the inherent mana and iho of wāhine Māori through Wai 2700 – the Mana Wāhine Kaupapa Inquiry. In addition, the Wai 2864 claim – which the Tribunal registered in January 2019 and is part of the Mana Wāhine Inquiry – calls on the Crown to address inequities in employment suffered by wāhine Māori. We initially explored conducting an Inquiry into the Māori and Pacific Pay Gap and the experiences of both Māori and Pacific workers. However, due to the wide-ranging and multi-year work that the Waitangi Tribunal is undertaking, we did not want to replicate an area it would be exploring in depth from the distinct position of Tiriti rights. We acknowledge and reaffirm the place of Māori 14 as Tangata Whenua and as the Indigenous peoples of Aotearoa New Zealand. While we have restricted our focus in this Inquiry to Pacific peoples, we think that the findings and recommendations in this report will also be useful in exploring and addressing employment disparities faced by Tangata Whenua and other minority ethnic groups in Aotearoa New Zealand. A note on data The data we have drawn on in this report is available in the public domain. It includes data published by government and public sector agencies (such as Stats NZ Household Labour Force Survey and MBIE’s employment service data), non-governmental organisation data and data we have commissioned. Several of the tables and charts on labour market patterns by ethnicity were prepared and provided to us by the New Zealand Work Research Institute at Auckland University of Technology. This data is disaggregated by ethnicity and includes data held or commissioned by public agencies about Māori. While this Inquiry focuses on the Pacific Pay Gap, we have also taken the opportunity to highlight the pay gap for Māori – and for Māori women, in particular. We acknowledge that the data we have used in this section is Māori data and recognise and respect Māori data sovereignty in relation to it. This includes Māori rights over the collection, ownership and application of Māori data. Plum, Alexander, Gail Pachecho and Rod Hick. In-work Poverty in New Zealand. Auckland: New Zealand Work Research Institute, 2019, 25. https://workresearch.aut.ac.nz/__data/assets/pdf_file/0009/326709/In-work-Poverty-in-NZ_PDF.pdf. Voices of Pacific peoples 23