NEW ZEALAND
For the first time in New Zealand women outnumber men in the roles of Chief Executives of Public Service Departments.
Of the 33 Department heads, 17 are women (including in acting roles), representing 52 per cent of the total.
This is up from 14, or 44 per cent, as of 30 June 2018.
Minister for State Services, Chris Hipkins hailed the figures as “an outstanding achievement”.
“In addition to meeting this milestone, more women Chief Executives have been appointed to larger jobs,” Mr Hipkins said.
“Their average job size has increased by 15 per cent since 2016 and the job size gap with their male colleagues has narrowed to 6 per cent, compared with a 27 per cent gap in 2016.”
He said New Zealanders deserved a Public Service with an international reputation for excellence, one that reflected the communities it served and one with an international reputation for equal representation of women and paying women equally.
“We still have work to do, but the Public Service is making positive progress and setting a great example,” Mr Hipkins said.
Minister for Women, Julie Anne Genter (pictured) said having more women in leadership was the right thing to do, while diversity also helped organisations function more effectively.
“More women in leadership means better decision-making, better organisational resilience and better performance,” Ms Genter said.
“It also opens up more opportunities for women to succeed and contributes to a more inclusive and fairer society.”
She noted that women were now leading the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, Ministry of Education, Inland Revenue Department and soon would be leading at the Ministry for Social Development.
She said the State Services Commissioner had committed to ensuring that all Chief Executives would see a substantial reduction in the gender pay gaps in their Agencies.
Wellington, 5 December 2018
