As an employee in a federally regulated workplace, you have the right to earn equal pay for work of equal value.
If you work for a federally regulated employer with 10 employees or more, you may be covered by the Pay Equity Act.
If you work for a federally regulated employer with fewer than 10 employees, you maintain your right to equal pay for work of equal value under section 11 of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
Employee rights under the Pay Equity Act
You have a right to equal pay for work of equal value.
If you work for a federally regulated employer with 10 employees or more, you may be covered by the Pay Equity Act.
If you work for a federally regulated employer with fewer than 10 employees, you maintain your right to equal pay for work of equal value under section 11 of the Canadian Human Rights Act.
Your right to file a pay equity complaint
If your organization is covered by the Pay Equity Act, you can file a pay equity complaint within 60 days from becoming aware of the alleged conduct if:
- you believe certain employer obligations have not been met
- you believe your employer has tried to influence or interfere with the selection of the non-unionized employee representative for the pay equity committee
- you believe you have been retaliated against, by either your employer or your bargaining agent, for exercising your rights under the Act
- you believe that your employer or your bargaining agent has acted in bad faith or in an arbitrary or discriminatory manner in the context of their pay equity work
Your right to file a notice of objection
As an employee, you can also file a notice of objection within 60 days after the final pay equity plan is posted if you are in a workplace without a committee and you are of the opinion that certain steps of the pay equity process have not been followed:
- the identification of job classes
- determining whether a job class is neutral, female or male predominant
- determining the value of work
- calculating and comparing compensation
- in situations where employee comments are not considered during the development of a final pay equity plan
Important note about confidentiality: All complaints related to pay equity will remain completely confidential. Furthermore, an employer, bargaining agent or any other person acting on their behalf cannot penalize employees from exercising their rights under the Pay Equity Act.
For more information about complaints and notices of objection, please refer to Get help to resolve a dispute.
Employee participation
As an employee, you can be involved in the pay equity process. You can participate simply by accessing information about the pay equity process or even by sitting on the pay equity committee.
Your level of involvement in the pay equity process will vary based on whether you are unionized and the number of employees in your workplace.
Employee notices
As an employee, you will have access to information about the pay equity process, including for example:
- a notice that outlines your employer’s responsibility to develop a pay equity plan
- the draft and final pay equity plan
- once an employer/pay equity committee posts a draft pay equity plan, employees have a 60-day timeframe to provide their comments
- if there are any increases in compensation, the notice of increases outlining when the employer will provide increases or lump sum payments
- notice that the employer has asked the Pay Equity Commissioner for permission to change the way certain rules apply to them (such as a posting or payment deadline)
This information will be provided through accessible workplace postings.
Pay equity committees
A pay equity committee is a group of individuals selected to participate in the development of a pay equity plan and determine whether any increases in compensation are required for their workplace.
The following employers must establish a pay equity committee made up of employer and employee representatives:
- employers with 100 or more employees and
- employers with 10 to 99 employees, if some or all are unionized
If an employer has 10 to 99 non-unionized employees, it does not require to establish a pay equity committee but may decide to do so.
If your employer is required or has decided to create a pay equity committee and:
- you are unionized — your bargaining agent will get a seat on the committee, and it is up to the bargaining agent to determine who will be the representative
- you are not unionized — your workplace will have to hold a vote to choose a member to represent non-unionized employees
Employers must provide both workplace space and paid time so that employees can choose the member(s) to represent them on the pay equity committee.
Members have a right to paid time to participate in committee activities (e.g. to attend and prepare for meetings or participate in training).
About pay increases
Employees who will receive an increase in compensation will be notified about the amount of the increase and when they will receive it through the posting of the pay equity plan and notice of increases. An increase will only be provided if the pay equity plan identifies differences in compensation between jobs commonly held by men and those commonly held by women.