NZ’s New Pay Transparency Law — What leaders need to know and do now
Emily Rust
Effective date: 27 August 2025
Law: Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Act 2025
New Zealand has enacted a pay transparency amendment that protects employees’ rights to discuss pay and prohibits employer retaliation for those discussions. Adverse action tied to pay disclosure can now trigger a personal grievance, with a reverse onus on the employer to prove the action wasn’t because of the disclosure. Pay-secrecy clauses are now unenforceable and should not appear in new agreements.