Literature from the UK also highlights that working in lower-paid sectors may be a result of needing flexible work in order to engage in childcare responsibilities or a result of low-level skills and an increasing ‘gig economy’ or contracted work that drives down the pay floor.101 4.2 The Pacific Pay Gap: experiences at the intersections 4.2.1 The experiences of Pacific women When examining the Pacific Pay Gap, it is vital to account for intersectional analysis, as doing so reveals the stark differences in income between Pacific males and females.102 The experience of discrimination as a woman from an ethnic minority is different from Pākehā women’s experiences.103 Pacific women have been disproportionately impacted by employment issues such as occupational segregation,104 underutilisation and the gender 20 pay gap, yet there appears to be little research that acknowledges this experience of inequality for Pacific women. Data collected between 2005 and 2017 shows that there is a persistent and significant pay gap between Pacific migrant men and Pacific migrant women.105 Employed Pacific migrant men earned on average over $500 more per month than employed Pacific migrant women. However, Pacific migrant men still made over $1,000 less each month than non-Pacific migrant men, similar to non-Pacific migrant women. Looking at employment rates, Pacific male migrants are more likely to be employed than Pacific female migrants. Compared to non-Pacific male migrants, Pacific migrant men have higher employment rates whilst Pacific migrant women had the same employment rates as non-Pacific female migrants. The same studies show that retention of employment is higher for Pacific male migrants than female Pacific migrants, who only held a retention rate of 60 percent.106 101 Equality and Human Rights Commission, Fair Opportunities for All, 14. 102 McAllister et al., “Glass Ceilings in New Zealand Universities,” 272-285. 103 Reilly, Amanda. “Māori Women, Discrimination and Paid Work: The Need for an Intersectional Approach.” Victoria University of Wellington Law Review 50, no. 2 (2019): 323. 104 Occupational segregation refers to the uneven distribution of racial, ethnic and gender groups across occupations: Weeden, Kim, Mary Newhart, and Dafna Gelbgiser. “Occupational Segregation.” Pathways (2018): 30-33. 105 Sin, Isabelle, and Judd Ormsby. The Settlement Experience of Pacific Migrants in New Zealand: Insights from LISNZ and the IDI. Wellington: Motu Economic and Public Policy Research, 2018, 22-23. http://motu-www.motu.org.nz/wpapers/19_02.pdf. 106 Sin and Ormsby, The Settlement Experience of Pacific Migrants in New Zealand, 17-18.