Obligation 3: File an Annual Statement

The third obligation of the pay equity process is the filing of your annual statement with the Pay Equity Commissioner.

On this page:

• Preparing your annual statement
• What to include
• How to submit
• When to submit
• How the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner will use the information

Preparing your annual statement

Once employers subject to the Pay Equity Act have posted a pay equity plan, they must file an annual statement with the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner. This includes all federally regulated private and public sector employers with an average of 10 employees. 

Employers, including groups of employers, have an obligation to submit an annual statement to the Pay Equity Commissioner. 

This statement must contain basic information about the employer and its pay equity plan. The collection of this information will help the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner to better measure the gender wage gap and the impact of the Act and its Regulations.

What to include 

The information you provide in your annual statement will depend on whether you are submitting for an employer or a group of employers. 

If you have more than one pay equity plan, information about each separate plan must be included in a single annual statement. 

Most of the information required in the annual statement will have been requested at other times during the pay equity process. 

However, some information may change from year to year, such as: 

• the total number of employees of the employer – a new employee count must be done every year 
• the number of employees occupying positions in each predominantly female job classes for which an increase is required 
• among the number of employees in the predominantly female job classes owed an increase, the number of them who are women 
• any other elements listed below if a new pay equity plan is posted – employers may decide to revise their plan before the five-year deadline

Employer information 

Single employers must submit an annual statement that includes: 

1. legal name 
2. business number if applicable 
3. contact information for the senior person responsible for the pay equity plan 
4. date the employer became subject to the Act 
5. number of employees as of March 31 (public sector) or December 31 (private sector) 

A group of employers must submit an annual statement that includes: 

1. legal name of each employer in the group 
2. business number of each employer in the group if applicable 
3. or each employer in the group, contact information for a senior person who can answer questions about the pay equity plan 
4. date the group became subject to the Act 
5. the total of employees employed by each employer in the group as of March 31 (public sector) or December 31 (private sector) of the year preceding the year in which the annual statement is filed

Information about the pay equity plan 

Single employers and groups of employers must include: 

1. date the most recent version of the pay equity plan was posted 
2. whether you posted your pay equity plan within the prescribed timeframe or at a later date authorized by the Pay Equity Commissioner 
3. whether the pay equity plan was established or updated with a pay equity committee 
4. whether predetermined values of work were used when developing the pay equity plan

Information about female job classes owed an increase 

Single employers and groups of employers must include: 

1. The number of predominantly female job classes that require an increase in compensation: 
   1. For each job class listed, include: 
      1. the increase in compensation required in dollars per hour. 
      2. the percentage increase that this amount represents (for example, a job class that is currently paid $24.50/h is eligible for an increase of $0.50/h, which represents a 2.04% increase) 
      3. the date the increase in compensation is payable. 
      4. the total number of employees who occupy a position in that job class and who are entitled to an increase. 
      5. the number of women entitled to an increase. 
   2. If increases in compensation are being phased in: 
      1. the amount of each increase in dollars per hour 
      2. the dates on which each increase will be made 
   3. If an extension of the deadline to post the pay equity plan was granted: 
      1. the total of all lump sums 
      2. all interest paid on the lump sums 
      3. the total number of employees who occupy a position in that job class and who are entitled to an increase and a lump sum 
      4. the number of women entitled to an increase and a lump sum

How to submit 

An authorized individual can complete and submit an annual statement online through the Annual Statement Portal. 

An authorized individual is someone who has the permission to submit an annual statement on behalf of the employer/group of employers. This may be an official responsible for pay equity in the workplace. This individual will be the one who manages the access to an employer’s annual statement information.

Note on sharing information 

Employers are not required to share their annual statement with other workplace parties. Sharing the statement with other workplace parties is, however, good practice. It may be appropriate to discuss the sharing of the information contained in this statement with the pay equity committee. 

The Annual Statement Portal enables users to download a copy of the statement and share it.

When to submit 

The Pay Equity Act outlines deadlines for submitting your annual statement. The table below provides an overview of the deadlines for submitting your annual statement.

Example – Employers who received the authorization to extend the deadline for posting their final pay equity plan 

Some employers who made an authorization request to the Pay Equity Commissioner may have been granted more time to create and post their final pay equity plan. In these circumstances, they must file their first annual statement by June 30 of the calendar year following the year in which they posted their final pay equity plan. 

For example, an employer who has been granted a 6-month extension to post their final plan (or until March 3, 2025) must file their first annual statement by June 30, 2026. They must then submit a statement annually every June 30. 

How the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner will use this information 

The information you provide to the Canadian Human Rights Commission is collected under the authority of section 89 of the Pay Equity Act and 53 of the Pay Equity Regulations to administer the pay equity program under this legislation. This information includes aggregate pay equity data. 

Annual statements are submitted to the Office of the Pay Equity Commissioner only and are not accessible to the public. 

It is important that the information submitted through the annual statement process is accurate. It is a very serious offence which could lead to an administrative monetary penalty to knowingly make any false or misleading statement verbally or in writing. It is also a very serious offence which could lead to an administrative monetary penalty to knowingly make or participate in, assent to or acquiesce in the making of a false or misleading statement in any record, report, electronic document that a person is required to prepare, retain or provide under the Act.