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The Pay Equity OfficeAnnual Report2013-2014

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Pay Equity Office Annual Report 2013-2014Table of ContentsCOMMISSIONER’S MESSAGE .5ONTARIO’S PAY EQUITY ACT .6ABOUT THE PAY EQUITY OFFICE .7VISION . 7MISSION . 7LEGAL MANDATE. 7VALUES . 7OVERVIEW AND KEY ACHIEVEMENTS .8OUTREACH AND EDUCATION . 8PAY EQUITY INVESTIGATIONS AND MONITORING . 9ADVANCING GENDER WAGE GAP AND PAY EQUITY. 11PERFORMANCE MEASURES . 12PAY EQUITY OFFICE ORGANIZATION . 13STAFF . 13UNIT DESCRIPTIONS . 14COMMISSIONER’S OFFICE . 14DIRECTOR’S OFFICE. 14REVIEW SERVICES . 14RESEARCH, EDUCATION AND OUTREACH . 14CORPORATE AND LEGAL SERVICES . 14FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE 2013-2014 . 15ACCOUNTABILITY STATEMENT . 16APPENDIX 1 – CASELOAD STATISTICS . 17Annual Report 2013/14 3

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Pay Equity Office Annual Report 2013-2014Commissioner’s MessageMuch has been written about the gender wage gap in the 25 years since thePay Equity Act was enacted. In 1988 it was clear both from an economic andhuman rights perspective that significant intervention would be necessary toaddress the many causes of the gender wage gap. While pay equity was animportant key mechanism, it was recognized that it alone would not narrow thegap nor effect the necessary culture change required to fully recognize thevalue of women’s work. In the intervening years, progress on the broaderissue of narrowing the gender wage gap and influencing culture change hasbeen slow; there is a renewed recognition that a more integrated and systemicapproach involving government,labour,business and working women isneeded.Reflecting on 25 years of operation, the Pay Equity Commission (PEC) has had many successes ineducating the public and enforcing the Act, raising the wages for hundreds and thousands of workingwomen. These successes have been well documented in literature and in previous Annual Reports.For our part, in 2013-14, the Office published a mini-kit for small business, available on our website, inrecognition of the fact that small to medium businesses form the majority of Ontario enterprises. Ouroutreach partnerships with the Ministries of Labour and Ministry of Economic Development, Trade andEmployment (METDE), and with Human Resources Professional Association (HRPA), continue to increaseour ability to expand our contact with the business community and increase awareness of the obligationsrequired to comply with the Act. For the first time, Pay Equity Office (PEO) was successful in partneringwith the Toronto Board of Trade to mark International Women’s Day by hosting a “Toronto Board of TradeEvent”.We also contributed to the broader policy dialogue on issues affecting women and work. In October of2013, our Office made submissions to the Ontario Securities Commission in its public consultation arounddisclosure requirements of gender related initiatives in publicly traded companies (comply or explain). Atthe same time, the PEO made submissions to Ministry of Labour (MOL) during its consultation processaround minimum wage. In our view both of these initiatives are important contributions that, ifimplemented, will work towards ensuring women’s economic advancement in Ontario.During this fiscal period, the Office undertook an extensive review of its vision, values and missionstatement in recognition of the need to adapt to changing priorities of both government and the public. Thisexercise informed the crafting of three strategic objectives that will form the basis for the next three yearplanning cycle.As always, I take this opportunity to thank our staff for their continued dedication to pay equity and for theirwork in educating businesses about the merits of having compensation practices that value the work andcontribution of all employees, regardless of gender.Respectfully SubmittedEmanuela HeyninckAnnual Report 2013/14 5

Pay Equity Office Annual Report 2013-2014Ontario’s Pay Equity ActAccording to Statistics Canada, the 2011 gender wage gap in Ontario for full-time, full-year employment is26%. Studies show that nearly a third of this gap could be attributed to systemic discrimination in theworkplace and can be manifested throughout an organization: from the hiring process, the organizationalculture, assignment of work, through to how specific jobs are paid. These forms of discrimination areaddressed by a variety of laws. The purpose of the Pay Equity Act is to redress systemic genderdiscrimination in the compensation of employees in female job classes. All public sector employers and allprivate sector employers with ten or more employees are required to have compensation practices thatprovide for pay equity.Achieving Pay EquityThe Act sets out the criteria to be applied by employers to identify systemic gender discrimination incompensation and the means by which it is to be corrected.To meet the minimum requirements and to show that pay equity has been achieved, all employers coveredby the Act are required to undertake the following at each of the employer’s establishments:12345Note: Determine job classes, including identifying the gender of the job class and job rate; Determine the value of job classes based on factors of skill, effort, responsibility and workingconditions; Conduct comparisons for all female job classes using the job-to-job, proportional value orproxy method of comparison (proxy is for public sector only and of limited application); Adjust the wages of underpaid female job classes so that they are paid at least as much orequal to a comparable male job class or classes within the establishment; Maintain pay equity for female job classes to ensure that new pay equity gaps are notcreated or re-emerge.* The proxy method of comparison contained in Part II of the Act was, repealed in 1996 and restored bycourt order in 1997. The Pay Equity Office continues to enforce the proxy provisions. 6 Annual Report 2013/14

Pay Equity Office Annual Report 2013-2014About the Pay Equity OfficeIn 2013-14, the Pay Equity Office undertook arevision of its vision, mission and values to reflectits current strategic direction.VisionAdvance gender economic equality in Ontario.MissionThe Commission promotes gender economicequality by enforcing pay equity rights andobligations through effective case and complaintmanagement; understanding gender wage gapthrough research; and promoting awareness toadvance economic equality for Ontario’s workingwomen.Legal MandateThe Pay Equity Commission was established bysection 27 of the Pay Equity Act, 1987, S.O.1987.c.34 (the Act) and is continued bysubsection 27(1) of the Act, R.S.O, 1990, c.P.7as amended (the Act). The Commission consistsof two separate and independent parts: the PayEquity Hearings Tribunal (PEHT), and the PayEquity Office.The Commissioner is the head of the PEO andthe Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) of thePEC, appointed by the LieutenantGovernor in Council on therecommendation of the Minister. TheChair of the PEHT is responsible for thePEHT’s administration.The Minister of Labour is accountable tothe government for the PEC and isresponsible for representing the PEC inCabinet and its Committees, in theLegislative Assembly and before Committees ofthe Legislature. The Minister is accountable tothe Legislature for the PEC’s fulfillment of itsmandate and compliance with governmentadministrative policies. The Minister is alsoresponsible for the review and approval of thePEC’s Business Plan and Annual Report, and forsubmitting them to Management Board ofCabinet.ValuesFAIRNESS - We demonstrate integrity byproviding equitable and impartial enforcementactions.ACCOUNTABILITY - We accept responsibilityfor our activities and disclose the results in atransparent manner.SERVICE EXCELLENCE - We strive to provideoutstanding and responsive service.IMPACT - We influence, educate, and enforce toachieve and maintain pay equity in Ontarioworkplaces.CONNECT- We connect and advance women’scompensation issues by building effectivepartnerships with diverse stakeholders andcommunities.To advance gender economicequality in OntarioAnnual Report 2013/14 7

Pay Equity Office Annual Report 2013-2014Overview and Key AchievementsThe Pay Equity Office achieves its mandatethrough: Conducting education and outreach; Investigating and resolving complaintsthrough alternative dispute resolutionmethods, or issuing Orders forcompliance; Referring Orders to the Pay EquityHearings Tribunal (the Tribunal) forenforcement; Monitoring establishments forcompliance with the provisions of theAct; Researching and disseminatinginformation about pay equity andOntario’s gender wage gaps to thepublic and workplace parties; Preparing reports and recommendationsto the Minister about pay equity andrelated matters.Outreach and EducationCommunicating the purpose and obligations ofthe Pay Equity Act is a cornerstone function ofthe Pay Equity Office. The PEO utilizes variouschannels of communication to inform toemployers, bargaining agents, employees andinterested parties on the implementation andmaintenance of pay equity.The PEO has a self-serve website that hasguides, tools and 24/7 e-learning modules toprovide site visitors with the information that theyneed. This year, our 15 e-learning modules werere-vamped, a tool for small business employerswas released to support job evaluation and payequity analysis and our case study (Space Toycompany case study) was refreshed andupdated. PEO also partnered with ServiceOntario to add information on pay equity 8 Annual Report 2013/14legislation and requirements to the “ONe-Source”website. ONe-Source provides employers withdirect access to information on governmentservices at all levels and support in operating andgrowing a business or not-for-profit organization.The PEO continues to evaluate its web resourcesto ensure that information remains relevant andreviews other government sites for potentialcross-links.In addition to the availability of the website, thePEO conducts real-time training throughwebinars and seminars. This year twenty-onewebinars were delivered to over 440 participants.Webinars are offered in five key areas andenables two-way interaction on critical topics.The PEO also conducted twenty-two speakingengagements with private sector employers, highschools and universities and at human resourcesprofessionals’ regional association meetings.The PEO prioritizes its outreach opportunities tomaximize its reach to employers and the use ofpartnerships enables the PEO to leverage limitedresources. In 2013/14, the PEO partnered withseveral business associations to provideeducation materials and conduct outreach withemployers at small business forums and annualbusiness association meetings such as theOBEA (Ontario Business Educators’Association), the SOHO SME Expo (Small andMedium Size Enterprise), Enterprise TorontoSmall Business Forum, BGSY (Business,Government Services and You) as well as theCanadian Restaurant and FoodservicesAssociation conference. At the HRPA (HumanResources Professionals Association) nationalconference, a workshop was delivered and ourvendor booth reached over 700 human resourcesprofessionals.As part of a strategy to reach senior executives,the PEO partnered with the Toronto Region