Pay Transparency Rules Have Changed – Are You Ready?

From 27 August 2025, a new law came into effect – the Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Act 2025.

This change to the Employment Relations Act 2000 is aimed at promoting transparency and fairness around pay in the workplace.

What this means for your employees
Employees now have the right to openly talk about their pay if they choose to. They can share their salary or wage details with co-workers, friends, or others, and they can ask questions about pay without worrying about adverse consequences. If they believe they’ve been unfairly treated because of discussing or disclosing pay, they can raise a personal grievance under the Employment Relations Act.

What this means for you as an employer
In the past, employment agreements often included “secrecy clauses” preventing staff from discussing their pay. Under the new law:

• These clauses are no longer enforceable.
• Employers cannot take any adverse action against staff for discussing pay. If they do, the employee may raise a personal grievance.

Adverse action could include:

• Offering less favourable terms than to others.
• Blocking access to benefits, promotions, or training.
• Dismissal or pressure to retire / resign.
• Actions that disadvantage the employee.

As an employer, what action should you take now?
We recommend you:

• Review and update your employment agreement templates for new hires.
• Update HR policies.
• Update disciplinary and grievance processes.

Note: You do not have to update your existing employment agreements – the new legislation automatically applies.

A key obligation to keep in mind …
If a personal grievance is raised, the onus is on you, as the employer, to prove that any adverse action was not linked to the employee’s pay disclosure.

If you’re a client of People in Mind and we write your employment agreements for new hires, we will check that your agreements are compliant whenever we update your documentation. Get in touch with us if you haven’t updated your agreements (and other employment documentation) recently – we’re here to help you stay compliant.

Please note:
This information is offered as a guide only and for any situation you may be facing we recommend that you obtain independent professional advice. Of course People in Mind can provide that advice – just call us or email us and we will be in touch.