Sept 2025

In this episode of the Kat Mak talk show, Bex Howells shares her journey as a gender pay equity advocate, discussing the systemic issues women face in the workforce, the importance of recognizing personal worth, and the need for a cultural shift in how women perceive their contributions. Bex emphasizes the significance of service professions, the impact of AI on job value, and the necessity of building a movement for change. She encourages women to embrace their rebellious nature and to advocate for their worth in a system that often undervalues them.

July 2025

This episode with Bex Howells uncovers why high-achieving women burn out or plateau even when they’re doing everything “right.” It breaks down how survival-based thinking, hidden burnout patterns, and subconscious self-protection keep women stuck despite hard work, good habits, and strong mindset. Participants learn the belief shift and inner reorientation needed to unlock their next chapter with clarity and ease.

Jan 2025

The National Council for Women NZ interview Bex about her campaign for paid training in female dominated professions.

Bex’s master’s research examines how compulsory unpaid placements in nursing, midwifery, and mental-health training create a hidden gendered pay gap. It shows how this unpaid labour reinforces occupational segregation, fuels internalised devaluation, and undermines sustainable workforce development. The research proposes structural changes to support a fairer, future-ready care workforce.

How university fees and compulsory unpaid placements create long-term financial disadvantages for students entering teaching, nursing, midwifery, and social work. Using economic modelling, it shows that the years spent in unpaid training delay earnings, compound student debt, and significantly reduce lifetime retirement savings—leaving essential workers financially behind their counterparts in paid-training professions like police and firefighting. The study highlights these structural inequities as a hidden contributor to workforce shortages and a gendered gap in economic security.

This paper amplifies the voices of nursing, midwifery, and mental-health students in Aotearoa New Zealand, revealing how unpaid clinical placements compound financial hardship, excessive workloads, bullying, safety risks, and emotional strain. These stressors contribute to high attrition rates, undermine student wellbeing and learning, and accelerate the loss of graduates to overseas health systems. The paper argues for a universal stipend and enforceable placement regulations to create equitable, sustainable workforce development.