Some 2500 claims of low pay based on gender discrimination have been formally handed in to the Employment Relations Authority.
Aged care workers and union member presented a petition to the Employment Relations Authority in Auckland. Photo: RNZ / Lauren Baker
A group of aged-care workers are following the example of Lower Hutt woman Kristine Bartlett, who won an Employment Court case last year arguing that the low pay for women in the elderly care work sector is gender discrimination.
That decision is being appealed against by her employer, TerraNova.
Members of the Service and Food Workers Union and the New Zealand Nurses Organisation rallied outside the Employment Relations Authority in Auckland this afternoon before handing in the claims.
The Service and Food Workers' Union's Andrea Rushton, says Ms Bartlett's case has encouraged many more to demand higher pay.
Ms Rushton says the work is highly skilled and caregivers should be paid at least $18.90 per hour.
