PAY EQUITY

IN NON-UNION
WORKPLACES

Is the Law Working for You?

Pay equity is equal pay for work of equal value. The Pay Equity Act was made law in Ontario to narrow the wage gap that exists between women's and men's wages. This law requires your employer to compare the value of jobs usually done by women to the value of jobs usually done by men. If their value is equal or comparable, they must be paid at least the same as male jobs.

No.  Equal pay for equal work means that if a man and a woman are doing the same job in the same organization, they must receive the same wage. If you have an equal-pay-for-equal-work complaint, call the Employment Standards Branch of the Ministry of Labour.

Your employer groups similar jobs into job classes. These job classes are classified as female-dominated, male-dominated or gender neutral. Accurate, complete job information is collected about female and male job classes.

Your employer then uses a job comparison system to evaluate women's and men's jobs. This system must be gender neutral, which means it cannot favour the work done in men's jobs over the work done in women's jobs. The system uses the collected job information to value each job class on the basis of four factors - skill, effort, responsibility and working conditions.

Once all the job classes are valued, female job classes are compared to male job classes. If a female job class (e.g. secretary) is found to be equal or comparable in value to a male job class (e.g. service technician), they must be paid the same. If the male job class is paid more, the law requires the wage of the female job class to be increased.

There are three ways your employer can achieve pay equity:

1. The job-to-job comparison method is the direct method of comparing female and male job classes in the same organization. It directly matches female job classes to male job classes found to be of equal or comparable value in the same organization.
   
   
2. The proportional value comparison method is the indirect method of comparing female and male job classes in the same organization where there was no direct match for a female job class. It looks at the relationship between the value of work done and the compensation received by an appropriate group of male job classes, then applies that same relationship - or overall pay pattern - to the unmatched female job classes in the same organization.
   
   
3. The proxy comparison method is ONLY used by broader public sector organizations if they cannot achieve pay equity using job-to-job or proportional value comparisons and if they have a Review Officer's order from the Pay Equity Commission. This method allows an organization to compare its unmatched female job classes with a group of female job classes that have achieved pay equity in another broader public sector organization offering similar services.

You are covered by this law if you work for:

• a broader public sector employer or
• a private sector employer with 10 or more employees

You are not covered by this law if you work for:

• the federal government
• federally regulated companies such as broadcast stations and chartered banks
• a private sector company with fewer than 10 employees in Ontario as of January 1, 1988 (if these companies grow in size and have 10 or more employees, they must achieve pay equity for their employees immediately.)

Your employer, by law, should have already done pay equity.  Deadlines were determined by the size of your workplace and the comparison method used to achieve pay equity.

Method 1 : Job-to-Job Comparaison

Method 2 : Proportional Value

All public and broader public sector employers using the job-to-job or proportional value comparison method must achieve pay equity by January 1, 1998.

Method 3 : Proxy Comparisons

If your employer is required to post a plan, look for your pay equity plan at work. Your plan is the document that shows how your employer compared jobs in your organization and tells which job classes need wage adjustments to achieve pay equity. All plans should be posted in a prominent spot in the workplace where it can be seen and read by all employees.

If your employer is a private sector employer with 10 to 99 employees who chose to NOT post a plan, your employer must be able to prove to you that pay equity was achieved in your workplace. You have the right to ask your employer how pay equity was done. If you are not satisfied, you can complain to the Commission. Remember, not posting a plan means your employer must achieve pay equity by the first wage adjustment date (see section When does my employer have to do pay equity for the schedule.)

That depends on whether a pay gap has been identified for your female job class and the amount of the pay gap.

If your employer posted a plan, your employer is required to pay out each year a minimum of 1% of the last year's payroll in wage adjustments until pay equity is achieved. This 1% minimum must be shared among all female job classes that were found to be underpaid. The female job class with the lowest job rate must be given the highest pay equity adjustment.

If your employer is a private sector employer with 10 to 99 employees who chose to NOT post a plan, your employer must make all pay equity adjustments by the first wage adjustment date (see section When does my employer have to do pay equity for the schedule.)

All pay equity plans should contain the following:

• the name and address of your employer
• the establishments this plan applies to (this may be more than one workplace within the same county or regional municipality)
• the date the plan was posted
• the grouping of jobs into job classes and their gender
• the female job classes covered by the plan
• a description of the method used to compare female job classes to male job classes
• the results of the comparison (a listing of female job classes and the male job classes they were compared to)
• any permissible differences
• adjustments to wages to achieve pay equity
• the schedule for paying out these adjustments to female job classes
• the name and phone number of the contact person for more information

If any of this information is missing or incorrect, talk to your employer or the Commission. If your employer has missed the posting deadline, you have the right to complain to the Commission.

If you work for a private sector employer with 10 to 99 employees who did NOT post a plan, you have the right under the law to ask how pay equity was achieved in your workplace.

Your employer is not required to prepare a plan, although the Commission does recommend it. However, your employer must be able to prove to you that pay equity was achieved in your workplace. Otherwise, you can complain to the Commission.

Here are some areas you should look at when assessing if pay equity was achieved in your workplace, whether a plan was posted or not. If you are not satisfied with the answers to these questions, you may have grounds to make a complaint to the Commission.

1. Job Class

2. Gender of Job Classes

3. Job Comparison System

4. Job Rate

5. Permissible Differences in Wages

6. This Year's Adjustments to Wages

7. Maintaining Pay Equity

Ask yourself the same questions noted earlier. In addition…

With proportional value, ask yourself:

• Did my employer select the most appropriate group of male job classes to represent my workplace?
• Were some male job classes left out of the analysis that should have been included?

With proxy comparison, which applies ONLY to public sector organizations that had employees on July 1, 1993,, ask yourself:

• Was the proxy employer appropriate? In my geographic area? (The Act sets out a schedule of similar organizations in different geographic areas for proxy comparisons).
• Did the proxy organization post its pay equity plan before comparisons with my organization were made?
• Were the female job classes from the proxy organization similar to my female job class and others in my workplace?
• If there were no similar job classes, was a representative group of female job classes selected by the proxy employer?
• Were benefits included in the proxy organization's job rates?
  

If your employer posted a plan, you have 90 days after the pay equity plan has been posted to discuss and bring forward any problems to your employer. Keep a record of phone calls and notes of meetings relating to your complaint. This information may be helpful when a Review Officer investigates your case.

After the 90-day period, your employer will look at the comments and concerns made by you and other employees. Within 7 days, your employer must post a revised plan or a notice stating whether or not the plan has been amended. You have 30 days after the revised plan or notice is posted to complain to the Commission.

If you work for a private sector employer with 10 to 99 employees who did NOT post a plan, ask your employer how pay equity was achieved in your workplace. Although your employer is not required to do a plan, he/she must be able to prove to you that pay equity was achieved in your workplace. You can ask for information even after the legislated adjustment date has passed.

Before you talk to your employer about pay equity, learn as much as you can about pay equity and how it affects your job and your workplace.

Here are some suggestions:

• Read any material on pay equity your employer has provided, such as company newsletters about pay equity.
• Discuss your concerns with other workers. Maybe all of you have been worrying about the same things. Ask them if they would meet your employer with you.
• Call the Pay Equity Commission's toll-free hotline and ask for information (toll-free 1-800-387-8813).
• Ask for a copy of the Commission's one-page sample plan, which shows you what to look for in a pay equity plan.
• Make copies of your pay equity plan (if one was posted) and your job description, and study them.
• Write down your questions or concerns. You might want to practice explaining your point of view with someone who will ask questions and help in your presentation.

Yes. You can still file a complaint with the Pay Equity Commission. However, if it is possible, try to talk to your employer first.

There are several ways to file a complaint:

• You can call the Commission's hotline. The counsellors can take the information from you over the phone and fill in the complaint form for you. If your concerns are not a pay equity issue, the counsellors might refer you to another agency, such as the Employment Standards Branch of the Ministry of Labour or the Human Rights Commission.
• You can make a complaint by filing an "Application for Review Services" form.
• You can write a letter of complaint and mail or fax it to the Commission.

For the Commission's hotline numbers, address and fax number, see the final page of this document.

Whether you call, fill in the form or write a letter to file a complaint, the following is needed:

• your name (if you want to give it)
• the address and phone number (business or home) where you can be contacted
• the name of your employer
• the name and phone number of the person who signed the pay equity plan (usually your employer or the personnel department)
• what the complaint is about

Although documentation is not needed when you file a complaint, it would be helpful to have some information available when a Review Officer calls. This could include a copy of your pay equity plan (if a plan was posted), your job description and any pay equity questionnaires your employer asked you to complete.

Not if you don't want your employer to know. You can appoint an agent or a spokesperson, such as a friend, relative, co-worker, supervisor or lawyer, to act on your behalf.

You can also complain as a group. Just write the name of the person to contact or spokesperson on the "Application for Review Services" form. The rest of the names can be attached on a list or kept until a Review Officer contacts you.

The Commission assigns a Review Officer to your case, who calls you or your agent to ask for any information that may be missing from your application form. The Review Officer discusses your complaint with you and goes over the choices you have. At this point, you can continue with the complaint, decide to drop it or appoint an agent to represent you.

The Review Officer always calls you first, before calling your employer, and will not speak to your employer without your permission. If you wish to remain anonymous, he/she will tell you how this is done. The Review Officer then discusses the complaint with your employer and tries to reach an agreement between the two of you.

If you and your employer cannot reach an agreement, the Review Officer has the power to write an order to resolve the complaint. If your organization posted a plan, your employer must post a new pay equity plan reflecting the order or settlement. If your company did not post a plan (a private sector employer with 10 to 99 employees), your employer must still abide by the Review Officer's decision.

If either you or your employer do not agree with an order made by the Review Officer, then you or your employer can request a hearing before the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal. If neither one of you makes this request, both you and your employer must follow the order.

We are here to help. We can answer your questions by e-mail at pecinfo@mol.gov.on.ca or by phone at (416) 314-1896, or toll-free at 1-800-387-8813. Publications and seminars are available free of charge. Request these by contacting us at pecseminars@mol.gov.on.ca

All communications are confidential.