If you work in the public service...under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, you have a right to equal pay for equal value...

...it is discriminatory for employers to pay different wages to men and women performing work of equal value

The Canadian Human Rights Commission...   has a mandate to address the problem of unequal pay by investigating employee complaints rather than by setting mandatory timetables as required by some provinces

Equal pay law was introduced because of the large differences between the earnings of men and women.

Low wages for female-dominated jobs... reflect discriminatory attitudes toward women... economists have estimated that twenty to thirty percent of the wage gap is due to this kind of discrimination...

...the legal minimum wage in some parts of Canada was lower for women until the early 1970s

Although attitudes toward women and women's roles have changed dramatically, undervaluing of work performed by women persists.

Pay equity builds on earlier laws which required equal pay for people performing the same work.

Under pay equity, it is no longer necessary to compare a job with another that is exactly the same...

...Jobs that appear to be different can still be compared if they can be shown to be equal in their overall value...

The value of work is calculated using job evaluations which rate the skill, responsibility and effort required by the job, as well as working conditions.

The equal pay process usually begins with a complaint made by an employee or union claiming that an employer is not giving equal pay for work of equal value.

Since it became federal law in 1978, approximately 70,000 employees have received equal pay increases as a result of cases involving the Commission.

No employee can lose money as a result of an investigation.

Employers cannot lower the pay of those working in traditional men's jobs as a way of achieving wage equality.

Equal Pay for Work of Equal Value: Employees' Guide

Are you paid what your job is really worth?

If you work in the public service or for a federally regulated employer under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Human Rights Commission, you have a right to equal pay for equal value. The Canadian Human Rights Act states that it is discriminatory for employers to pay different wages to men and women performing work of equal value.

Equal pay for work of equal value, or pay equity, is an important part of efforts to guarantee women - and men working in female-dominated jobs - a fair deal. It is now policy not only in the federal sector but also in eight of Canada's provinces and the Yukon Territory, as well as some countries of the European Economic Community, the Scandinavian countries, Australia, New Zealand and many American states.

The Canadian Human Rights Commission ensures compliance with federal equal pay policy in cooperation with Labour Canada. Under the Act, the Commission has a mandate to address the problem of unequal pay by investigating employee complaints rather than by setting mandatory timetables as required by some provinces. It also seeks to promote better understanding of the pay equity process through seminars and publications. This booklet will discuss why pay equity legislation was introduced, how it is implemented, what the results are and the Commission's role.

The wage gap

Equal pay law was introduced because of the large differences between the earnings of men and women. The salaries paid to employees in areas dominated by women - such as clerical work, nursing and retail sales - are often low. In Canada today, women working full-time still make an average of only seventy-two cents for every dollar earned by men, and this wage gap has narrowed by just eight percentage points since the late 1960s.

The persistence of the wage gap is more than an interesting statistical footnote. The underpayment of women workers has a direct and tangible effect on the financial well-being of many Canadian women and their families.

Why is there a wage gap between men and women?

Low wages for female-dominated jobs are due to several factors. Partly, they reflect differences in education, physical effort, hours of work, time spent in the labour market, and so on. But they also reflect discriminatory attitudes toward women and the jobs they have traditionally held. Canadian economists have estimated that twenty to thirty percent of the wage gap is due to this kind of discrimination. It is this portion of the gap that pay equity programs seek to redress.

Some of the wage gap is a result of deliberate policies in the past. Wage laws passed in the first decades of this century effectively set women's base salaries about a third lower than men's. As a matter of fact, the legal minimum wage in some parts of Canada was lower for women until the early 1970s.

Why was this so? Partly because of prevailing perceptions about family responsibilities. Since men were seen as the breadwinners who supported the family, it was thought they should be paid better than women. Wages earned by women were regarded as little more than pocket money for secondary expenses.

A more general tendency to undervalue women's work also played a role. Lower pay rates for female-dominated occupations have become an accepted part of compensation systems. Secretaries may be paid less than warehouse workers and nurses less than electricians not because their jobs are worth less, but because these jobs were traditionally performed by women. Although attitudes toward women and women's roles have changed dramatically, undervaluing of work performed by women persists. In many workplaces, men and women doing work of equal value are still paid differently.

Equal value means equal pay

Pay equity builds on earlier laws which required equal pay for people performing the same work. Comparisons could only be made between jobs that were identical or largely similar. Those laws solved some problems, but they did not help people working in female-dominated sectors who had no one with whom to compare themselves.

Under pay equity, it is no longer necessary to compare a job with another that is exactly the same. Jobs that appear to be different can still be compared if they can be shown to be equal in their overall value, and according to the law, jobs that are equal in total value must receive equal pay. Fairness means that pay must be based on the worth of work, not on the sex of the people who do it.

How equal value is determined

The value of work is calculated using job evaluations which rate the skill, responsibility and effort required by the job, as well as working conditions. The total point score received by each job represents its value. The scores and salaries of jobs dominated by women and men may then be compared to determine whether work of equal value is being compensated equally. Comparisons are limited under federal law to the jobs of people working within the same establishment.

Jobs that are very different may still receive the same total score. Let's say, for example, that a hospital research technician receives 125 points for skill, 55 for responsibility, 50 for effort and 20 for working conditions. His job is worth a total of 250 points. Now let's say that a nutritionist working in the same hospital gets 145 points for skill, 65 for responsibility, 30 for effort and 10 for working conditions. Her job gets fewer points for effort and working conditions and more for skill and responsibility. Overall, however, it also scores 250. She should therefore be paid the same amount as the technician, and under the Canadian Human Rights Act the employer must adjust her salary.

The equal pay process usually begins with a complaint made by an employee or union claiming that an employer is not giving equal pay for work of equal value. Anyone working within federal jurisdiction can file a complaint with the Commission. This includes employees of the federal public service, of crown corporations, of the banking, transportation and communication industries or of any other company which falls under federal authority.

When an employee first contacts the Canadian Human Rights Commission, the details of the case are examined to verify whether it falls under the Commission's jurisdiction and to confirm that it may, in fact, constitute a case of pay discrimination. Once a formal complaint is signed by the employee, the Commission appoints an investigator who conducts a three-stage investigation collection of job information, analysis of that information with a job evaluation plan, and calculation of any pay adjustments needed to eliminate wage discrimination.

At the end of the investigation, the investigator reports the findings to the complainant and employer, and makes a recommendation to the Commission regarding further action. If the parties have not reached agreement between themselves during the investigation, and the Commission believes that wage adjustments are necessary, a conciliator may be appointed or a tribunal established to settle the case. Tribunal decisions may be appealed to the courts.

Some employers choose to implement pay equity through initiatives launched in cooperation with employees and unions before any complaints are filed. The Canadian Human Rights Commission welcomes this approach, since cooperative initiatives usually produce faster results than the complaints process. The Commission encourages employees and unions to work together with employers who show a desire to address the problems of wage discrimination, and is always willing to provide assistance to all sides involved in the pay equity process.

Results

Pay equity works. Since it became federal law in 1978, approximately 70,000 employees have received equal pay increases as a result of cases involving the Commission. Equal pay has been achieved between librarians and historical researchers, kitchen workers and janitors, and nurses and paramedics, to name just a few. Women and men working in female-dominated sectors who have had complaints resolved under the Act have been awarded an average of about $5000 each in retroactive adjustments and $2300 each in ongoing yearly payments.

All employees are protected

No employee can lose money as a result of an investigation. By law, wage adjustments can only take the form of additions to salaries that are too low. Employers cannot lower the pay of those working in traditional men's jobs as a way of achieving wage equality.

Legislation also protects the complainant. An employer cannot penalize an employee or anyone involved in an investigation for turning to the Commission. It is an offense to threaten, intimidate or discriminate against someone who has made a complaint.

How to contact us

If you believe that you are not being paid fairly because you are a woman, or because you are employed in a job where most of the workers are women, the Commission would like to hear from you. If you are just interested in further information, we will be happy to answer your questions.

We have several publications on equal pay for work of equal value that both employees and employers may find useful. In addition, the Canadian Human Rights Commission organizes periodic workshops to inform employees and employers about their rights and responsibilities under the Act.

For more information or assistance you may call or write us:

Pay Equity Directorate
Anti-Discrimination Programs Branch
Canadian Human Rights Commission
344 Slater Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 1E1
Telephone: (613) 995-1151
Toll Free: 1-888-214-1090
TTY: 1-888-643-3304
Fax: (613) 992-6313

This publication is available as a sound recording, in large print, in braille and on computer diskette to ensure it is accessible to people who are blind or vision-impaired.

November 1998