WELLINGTON, Jan. 31 (Xinhua) -- The New Zealand government will take time to consider the recommendations by the Fair Pay Agreement Working Group on setting wage standards across industries or occupations, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Iain Lees-Galloway said on Thursday.

Fair Pay Agreements would set minimum standards to lift wages and conditions across an industry or occupation, according to its recommendations.

The Fair Pay Agreement Working Group, chaired by former Prime Minister Jim Bolger, comprised experts in economics, collective bargaining and employment law, along with representatives of workers and business.

"Right now, employers who pay their staff a fair wage are being undercut by competitors paying below a fair rate. It's a classic race to the bottom that's damaging people's prospects and holding many industries back," Lees-Galloway said in a statement.

"That's why I directed the Fair Pay Agreement Working Group to recommend the scope and design of a system of bargaining that sets minimum terms and conditions of employment across industries or occupations," the minister said.

The model that the Working Group has proposed would facilitate conversations not only about fair wage rates but about training pathways and opportunities to increase productivity and profit, he said.

The recommendations report outlines the challenges in making policy changes around fair pay, saying New Zealand is out of step with the OECD (the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development) both in terms of income inequality, and productivity, with Kiwis working longer hours but producing less per hour worked than those in most OECD countries.

"If we're going to build a modern and fairer New Zealand, we need a productive and sustainable economy that's growing and working for all of us," Lees-Galloway said.