Pay Inequity: Canadian Labour Congress Analysis of the Public Sector Equitable Compensation Act

Posted: Tuesday, 3 March 2009

I. Key messages

This new legislation introduces the notion that women's work in the public sector should be valued according to prevailing market conditions in the private sector.
It asserts a false equivalence between management and the union by making the union bear responsibility for the results of bargaining "equitable compensation," without restricting management rights to hire, control information, determine job classifications, or issue pay cheques.
If an employer fires a worker who files a complaint they are subject to a fine of $10,000, while a union that endeavours to represent that worker in the making of the complaint will pay a fine of $50,000.
It is alarming that workers will lose the right to challenge gender-based wage gaps under Human Rights law. It is unlikely that this provision will survive a Charter challenge.
This legislation disregards the recommendations of the Federal Pay Equity Task Force Report that called for proactive, inclusive, and timely legislation, which would ensure union involvement, and be supported by a new pay equity agency.
We fear we are witnessing an incremental plan by this government to reduce to zero the "union advantage" for all workers-borne first, on the backs of women workers in the public sector

II. Snapshot

The Public Sector Equitable Compensation Act was introduced by the Conservative minority government on February 6, 2009 as part of Bill C-10, the Budget Implementation Bill.

Market-based value:

The legislation redefines the terms under which "value" of work is assessed. The Act maintains the traditional criteria which looks at "the composite of the skill, effort, and responsibility required in the performance of the work and the conditions under which the work is performed." This new legislation, however, introduces the notion that women's work in the public sector should be valued by prevailing market conditions in the non-union private sector.

Real pay equity legislation aims at eliminating systemic discrimination in wages resulting from unchecked market forces. By introducing market forces as a comparator, no redress will ever be possible.

We are in favour of public policy that leads to upward harmonization of wages and working conditions. This legislation, however, appears designed to push federal public sector wages downward to meet the lower standards of the private sector.