Pay Equity

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SEIU is a leader in pay equity



 		       
SEIU has a strong history in fighting for pay equity. In the 1987 it pushed the Ontario government to pass the Pay Equity Act. The law requires employers to take positive steps to pay “women’s work” at the same rate as “men’s work.” The law was a great success. The pay gap between men and women has narrowed considerably since 1987.

In 1995, pay equity took a hit when Mike Harris’ Conservative government amended the Pay Equity Act by capping pay equity handouts to only $500-million, even though his government knew full well it would need $1-billion to equalize pay between men and women.

SEIU fought back by launching a legal challenge to the government’s decision. The result: In 2003 100,000 women in predominately female, public sector workplaces across Ontario received up to $414 million in pay equity funding from the Ontario Government.

The struggle for pay equity continues. Female workers in Ontario’s hospitals still earn less than their male counterparts. SEIU is addressing the pay gap by:
  • Creating new pay equity plans
  • Updating an existing pay equity plan
  • Creating new job evaluation tools that captures the full range of work done by men and women

The struggle for pay equity is an ongoing process and SEIU is working hard to close the pay gap between women and men. Interesting Articles on Pay Equity
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