Institutional racism in the workplace Most of the experiences people shared with us related to interpersonal racism and discrimination. However, institutional racism underpins these experiences. This section discusses how structural racism impacts Pacific people’s experiences of the pay gap. This can include streaming in schools, career advice, ideas about work and what it involves, the separation of family and community life from working life, and other aspects that might have influenced people’s employment journey. We have also drawn on research on structural discrimination in this section. This research reminds us that there are historical drivers for the discrimination Pacific peoples experience: New Zealand has benefitted from the colonisation of the Pacific by creating, and continuing to influence, education systems that limit Pacific peoples to low-skilled jobs. The 1950s–1980s saw New Zealand capitalise on this by ‘importing’ cheap Pacific labour which has contributed to the Pacific Pay Gap over time. The cumulative effects of occupational segregation, low pay, and little or no opportunity to upskill have prevented social mobility for Pacific peoples. Existing employment schemes such as the Recognised Seasonal Employer scheme continue this unfair labour transaction. Despite significant evidence of Pacific peoples experiencing racism in their jobs, there remain few accessible avenues for addressing this. One healthcare worker told us about their experiences in higher education, and the limits the institution tried to put on her. Although she had a clear vision about what she wanted to study, the university tried to direct her into what they thought was best for her: I went into the study, having to prove that I was capable of doing university level study; which is really weird, because even though I did the Theology degree, I did other papers. You know, it was just horrible, because they look at you - and even one of the lecturers tried to convince me not to do the addiction study, ‘cause they said, ‘Oh, you know, you might not be able to handle the workload; the theory side of it.’ And I said, ‘Oh no-no, it’s really what I want. I have looked at the counselling one, but it’s not what I want; this is what I want.’ And you know, they did try to talk me out of it. But yeah, it’s just really weird, because you know I did a Theology degree, but a lot of it was theory based; but they never saw it as good enough for me to be able to do this other undergraduate degree, for addiction. (T.003) A Pacific researcher we spoke to said: I’ve talked with teachers aka people who ‘mean well’, who have talked about PI males having an impact on the rugby field but not in education. These are nice people who subconsciously don’t realise what they are actually saying this. Stereotypical comments. (R002) They expanded on this theme to talk about how stereotypes can limit Pacific peoples into one type of employment, with ‘well-meaning’ encouragement into vocational training: Evidence from universities, six years after finishing a bachelor’s degree your income will tend to surpass the person with vocational training. Nothing wrong with these jobs, but I am worried about our people being given one option. Māori historically were given only one option in NZ for the longest time. (Researcher) A Pacific healthcare worker spoke about the dynamics of power in both the workplace and wider industry: I think that organisations like to say they are diverse, but in reality, most of the positions of power are taken by white men and women and white employees know how to talk the same language and access their white privilege that way. I have over 20 years of experience and am not recognised for this in my pay nor with regard from my peers or manager, which I assume is because I am vocal about racism in health against Māori and Pasifika and take time off to care for my family when they need me. I have only been able to work from home since the pandemic and am getting my work done well. However, there is an expectation that I will return to the office. (S105) Voices of Pacific peoples 73