Pay equity: employers are challenging only to delay
the implementation of the legislation

OTTAWA... According to the Canadian Human Rights Commission, legal procedures initiated by several employers are intended only to delay the implementation of the legislation and to deny women the right to equal pay for work of equal value. The Commission, which filed its annual report today, states the victory achieved by the Public Service Alliance of Canada (PSAC) against the federal government over pay equity for 230,000 current and former public service employees will have a positive impact in other pay equity disputes.

Nycole Turmel, PSAC national executive vice-president, indicated that "the Canadian Human Rights Commission’s report clearly shows that employers such as Canada Post, the Northwest Territories Government, Bell Canada and Air Canada are following the federal government’s example and pursuing multiple legal avenues only to delay the moment when they will have to comply with the legislation. For over 15 years our members fought an employer who paid lip service to the principle of equal pay for its employees, women and men, but who, in reality, challenged every principle in the courts."

However, even if the PSAC has won the fight for its members at Treasury Board, those members who were transferred to separate agencies since the filing of the complaint are still waiting to find out if their employers will stop their discriminatory practices and adjust their salaries in accordance with the federal pay equity agreement.

In its annual report, the Human Rights Commission mentions that the debate raised by the Alliance members pay equity issue caused many commentators to demand that the wages be determined by market forces. According to the Commission, this view "overlooks clear evidence that wages are influenced by values and traditions as well as supply and demand." According to the Commission, pay equity in a society such as ours is part of labour market requirements, as are minimum wages, workplace health and safety provisions, parental leave, etc."

Turmel believes the federal government’s legal challenge, in addition to delaying the inevitable and increasing costs, unfairly penalizes the individuals concerned. "While the first pay equity cheques are expected soon, the workers who receive them will have to pay a large portion back in income tax to the federal and provincial governments. This is most unfair; if those individuals had received the pay to which they were entitled, at the time they were entitled to it, they would not be required to pay so much income tax. The federal government’s tactics as an employer will greatly benefit the federal government as a tax collector."

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Information : Nycole Turmel, national executive vice-president

(613) 560-4310

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