We grouped what we heard into 12 key theme areas covering: • experiences in recruitment • retention and pay negotiation • barriers to promotion • upskilling and training opportunities • a lack of awareness and enforcement of workers’ rights • cross-cultural communication issues • experiences of self-employed contractors • being undervalued in the workplace • experiences of interpersonal racism • institutional racism in the workplace What the stories we heard from Pacific workers collectively reveal is that they experience barriers at every stage of the employment journey. These barriers contribute to a persistent pay gap for Pacific workers. The good news is that, at each of these points, there is also an opportunity to make interventions that will eliminate these practices and contribute to closing the Pacific Pay Gap. • experiences of intersectional discrimination • experiences of raising a concern. Experiences in recruitment The first stage of the employment journey is the process of finding a job. Pacific peoples experience barriers as soon as they enter the labour market. The key themes we heard from Pacific workers about recruitment were: • discrimination in the recruitment process • Pacific names can be a barrier • qualifications and work experience are undervalued • lack of pay transparency by employers • opportunities for Pacific peoples to support each other. Discrimination in the recruitment process Pacific workers told us they had experienced discrimination when applying for jobs, with one person commenting “I have found this easier if I exclude references to being Pacific generally speaking” (S158). Another told us of their general experience of “instantly being looked over for someone else who has less experience but a better face for the company” (S202). 40 During an interview or hiring process, people spoke about the limiting nature of the stereotypes they encountered. One Pacific worker spoke about the low expectations that recruiters would explicitly use: Anyway, we would rock up because they’d say, “You go there to register and then to find jobs.” I was waiting. My husband went in to be interviewed, then he comes out and I go in. They kept saying, “Oh they are looking for some lead down here at this factory and I think you’ll be good.” So, of course, I’m not born yesterday. I tried to … I was thinking, “It’s so direct. It’s so racist. What the hell?” Anyway, they did it to my husband too. They said, “You’re a strong man and be good for bricklaying.” (T002) A Pacific education worker told us about her experience applying for a teacher aide position at a local primary school: After the interview, I didn’t hear from them until I called and asked if the job had already been taken, which it already was. I strongly feel that I – as a Pacific Islander is one of the main reasons – I didn’t get the job. They did take a white girl whom