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So far PEO has created 66 blog entries.

Women’s Worth: Challenging the status quo at the Dynamic Women Summit

Cutting across gender, race, and class while drawing from her own experiences, Kadie Ward, Commissioner and CAO of Ontario’s Pay Equity Commission, confronts the stereotypes about women at work.

Through an exploration of history, culture and workplace practices, Commissioner Ward demonstrated how gender “norms” were constructed and how they persist today. This insightful talk digs deeper into the meaning of “women’s worth” and the tools needed to question the status quo to define our relationships with work, family, and our communities.

Attendees developed a fresh perspective on the complexity of today’s social norms, explored the implications of reducing the gender wage gap and the value of all women, and were empowered to advance all women across their organization.

Women’s Worth: Challenging the status quo at the Dynamic Women Summit2023-06-19T21:02:36-05:00

Thanks to the Initiative of the Czech Republic, the Gender Pay Gap Reduction Became a Topic at the UN CSW 2023

The Czech Republic, together with the European Commission and Costa Rica as co-sponsors, organized a side-event at the 67th UN CSW to discuss pay transparency in the context of the digital age. Participants filled the room to its maximum to attend the event entitled “New Opportunities to Reduce the Gender Pay Gap in the Digital Age: the EU Pay Transparency Directive, National Legislation Examples, and Further Good Practices Globally”, which dealt with good practices on the national (and other) levels.

The side event was opened by a presentation of the success of the Czech presidency of the European Council. Towards the end of 2022, a consensus was reached by all trilogue parties on the new pay transparency legislation “DIRECTIVE OF THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND OF THE COUNCIL to strengthen the application of the principle of equal pay for equal work or work of equal value between men and women through pay transparency and enforcement mechanisms”. The new EU law will empower women to enforce the principle of equal pay for equal work through a set of binding measures on pay transparency.

The plenum was also full of representatives of very interesting initiatives to reduce gender pay gap at all levels in many countries around the world. Among the great remarks was another very inspiring good practice came from Ontario, Canada in the presentation by Ms. Kadie Ward, Commissioner and Chief Administrative Officer, Pay Equity Commission of Ontario, and contributor to The Equal Pay International Coalition, ILO. Its specific added-value is based on the history of the legal provision in Ontario, its long-term nature that allows for analyses and measurement of efficiency, and its wealth of collected experience with the value of work systems.

The event was closed by a statement of consensus that a lot of good legislation has been discussed and, while it is extremely important to have strong and sound legal provisions, it all may not be enough to make a real change happen. It has to go hand in hand with education, awareness raising, and understanding the social processes that cause the problem in the first place.

UPDATE March 30, 2023

The Parliament’s plenary showed strong support of the legislation across the board by 427 votes to 79 against and 76 abstentions to adopt the pay transparency directive, including pay structures to compare pay levels will have to be based on gender-neutral criteria and include gender-neutral job evaluation and classification systems. Vacancy notices and job titles will have to be gender neutral and recruitment processes led in a non-discriminatory manner.

Here is further information, in case of your interest: Gender pay gap: Parliament adopts new rules on binding pay-transparency measures | News | European Parliament (europa.eu)

Thanks to the Initiative of the Czech Republic, the Gender Pay Gap Reduction Became a Topic at the UN CSW 20232023-06-19T21:15:44-05:00

Globe and Mail Women’s Collective Discussion on Women and STEM

Business leaders, including Commissioner Ward, gathered to have a roundtable discussion on the progress of gender inclusion and parity in the workplace, particularly women in STEM and how to attract and retain diverse talent.  After decades of mixed results, there is a growing awareness of the need to move beyond the basics and take bold steps to effect change. What actions and ideas will finally close the gender gap?

Canada’s tech sector and industries such as financial services and manufacturing are striving to attract and retain more women in fields such as cybersecurity, data analytics, engineering and IT. Men are four times as likely as women to work in the tech sector, according to a 2019 report by Brookfield Institute for Innovation and Entrepreneurship. The stat is concerning given the rapid pace of digital and technology-related job growth due in part to the pandemic. This Idea Exchange will bring women in technology and STEM together to share their views and insights for a more representative workforce.

Globe and Mail Women’s Collective Discussion on Women and STEM2023-06-19T11:14:43-05:00

International Women’s Day and Leader Talks with Anne-Marie Pham featuring Commissioner Kadie Ward

Women have been undervalued in the workplace for almost a century and a half. On this edition of the Leader Talks with Anne-Marie Pham podcast, we are recognizing tomorrow’s International Women’s Day with the incredible Kadie Ward, MBA to discuss gender inequality in the workplace.

This episode is packed with some amazing insights into how women have been undervalued in work over the years, why legislation is essential in closing the gender wage gap, how gender diversity, equity, and inclusion create economic prosperity, and so much more!

Commissioner Ward also shared some tools for how to make a difference in these issues and tells us how we can play a role in her vision for an inclusive Canada.

To hear all this and more, tune in now! Available at your preferred podcast platform now or visit the link: https://hubs.la/Q01FBWFD0.

International Women’s Day and Leader Talks with Anne-Marie Pham featuring Commissioner Kadie Ward2023-06-19T21:03:33-05:00

67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)​

C​ommissioner Ward attended the 67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)​​ to discuss bringing women and other marginalized groups into technology. Adding diverse voices to this growing sector results in more creative solutions and has greater potential for innovations that meet women’s needs and promote gender equality.

67th Session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW)​2023-06-19T21:03:58-05:00

Gender Gaps in Wages and Pensions: A Canadian analysis of how to close them

We need to continue to call to attention to the contributions of women around the world. But we also need equal pay, better social protections and shared domestic work between men and women to address the gender wage gap’s compounding effects and the persistence of the gender pension gap.

Gender Gaps in Wages and Pensions: A Canadian analysis of how to close them2023-07-06T20:42:47-05:00

Globe & Mail’s Women’s Collective Idea Exchange

Commissioner Ward was excited to participate in the Globe & Mail’s Women’s Collective Idea Exchange session BIPOC Women at Work – Overcoming barriers to advancement. Women typically experience a longer and more circuitous rise to the C-suite than men, but these challenges are significantly amplified for Black women, Indigenous women and other women of colour. The session aimed to reflect on how organizations can increase BIPOC representation across leadership levels.​

Globe & Mail’s Women’s Collective Idea Exchange2023-06-19T21:04:27-05:00

Ontario’s Pay Equity Office Launches New Legal Resource

The Pay Equity Office is pleased to offer a new resource for compensation specialists, unions, legal professionals, and others who are interested in learning more about pay equity law in Ontario.

The Selected Case Reference Guide is an annotated version of the Pay Equity Act with a curated selection of relevant tribunal and court caselaw presented alongside the section of the Act that it applies to.

Each selection is presented as a short synopsis of the case’s precedent with a link to the source decision on www.CanLii.org. Readers can look up key cases either by browsing to the section of the Act you’re interested in, or by using the Case Index at the end of the Guide.

“We are pleased to offer this valuable new resource to support pay equity practitioners in their understanding of the Pay Equity Act and relevant caselaw”, said Kadie Ward, Commissioner and Chief Administrative Officer of the PEO. “This guide will serve as an efficient reference tool to support employers create their pay equity plans in accordance with the Act.”

This Guide is a living document and will be updated from time to time. We welcome your feedback on the Guide – please send your comments to AskPayEquity@ontario.ca.

Ontario’s Pay Equity Office Launches New Legal Resource2023-07-06T20:42:59-05:00

Brazil Canada Chamber of Commerce

Commissioner Ward was pleased to join the Brazil Canada Chamber of Commerce for an important discussion on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion – Where it starts, a fireside chat to discuss pay equity and other inclusive practices in the workplace. ​

Brazil Canada Chamber of Commerce2023-06-12T19:17:44-05:00
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