Schoolgirl launches equal pay petition
‘‘ARE we there yet?’’ is a question typically asked by children on long drives.
For Columba College pupil Nora Paicu, it is a question she has been asking herself a lot lately, in relation to women’s rights and the gender pay gap in New Zealand.
By the time the 13yearold is ready to join the workforce, she hoped there would be significant change in the pay gap; and in a bid to prick social consciences, she has launched a petition on the New Zealand Parliament website calling for women to have equal pay to men.
She said inspiration for the idea came last year during a social studies class on the subject: ‘‘Are we there yet?’’.
‘‘This topic was talking about women in New Zealand, and how far we have come to gain women’s rights.
‘‘I learnt a lot about Kate Sheppard, about women gaining the right to vote in New Zealand on September 19, 1893 — the first country to let women vote in parliamentary elections.
‘‘After learning a lot about women’s history in New Zealand, I figured there is still a major problem that we have in New Zealand — the 9.2% pay gap in 2018 between women and men.
‘‘I thought that this is not right and that something must be done to change this.’’
She said she wanted to see men and women have ‘‘equal rights, equal respect and equal pay’’.
‘‘I want to see real change for future generations. If noone else is going to do it, then I should do it, because I believe in it.’’
Her petition, Women Should Have Equal Pay to Men, will remain on the Parliament website until February 2, 2020.