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1 About this Publication

About this Publication

2 Overview

2.1 What is Pay Equity?
2.2 Why does Ontario need Pay Equity?
2.3 What is the Ontario Pay Equity Act?
2.4 What is the Pay Equity Commission?
2.5 What is Pay Equity about?
2.6 What is Pay Equity NOT about?
2.7 What is the structure of the Pay Equity Act?
2.8 Q&As General Pay Equity

3 Guiding Principles for Interpreting the Pay Equity Act

Guiding Principles for Interpreting the Pay Equity Act

4 Summary of Requirements

4.1 Which employers must comply with the Pay Equity Act?
4.2 Part I: Requirement for ALL employers to ACHIEVE pay equity
4.3 Q&As Achieving Pay Equity
4.4 Part I: Requirement for ALL employers to MAINTAIN pay equity
4.5 Part II: Specific requirements only applicable for employers subject to Part II of the Pay Equity Act
4.6 Counting employees to determine applicable requirements

5 What are the Compliance Deadlines?

5.1 What are the deadlines for meeting the requirements of the Pay Equity Act?
5.2 What if an employer did not implement or achieve pay equity by the deadline?
5.3 When are retroactive payments due?
5.4 What are retroactivity dates for overdue pay equity adjustments?
5.5 Q&As Meeting Pay Equity Obligations Retroactively

6 Definitions

6.1 Who is in the public sector? Who is in the private sector?
6.2 Who is an employer?
6.3 Q&As Employer
6.4 Who is an employee?
6.5 Q&As Employees

7 Part I Requirements for Achieving Pay Equity

7.10 Méthodes de comparaison
7 Part I Requirements for Achieving Pay Equity
7.1 Defining the Establishment
7.2 Determining Job Classes
7.3 Q&As Job Class
7.4 Determining the Gender Predominance of Job Classes
7.5 Gender Bias and the Need for Gender Neutrality
7.6 Collecting Job Information
7.7 Deciding on a Mechanism or Tool to Determine the Value of Job Classes
7.8 Q&A Selecting a System to Value Jobs
7.9 Determining the Value of Job Classes
7.10 Q&As Job Evaluations
7.11 Determining the Job Rate
7.12 Q&As Job Rate and Benefits
7.13 Permissible Wage Differences
7.14 Q&A Formal Seniority System
7.15 Q&As Red Circling
7.16 Methods of Comparison
7.17 Job-to-Job Comparison Method
7.18 Proportional Value Comparison Method
7.19 Q&As Proportional Value

8 Part I Requirement to Maintain Pay Equity

8 Part I Requirement to Maintain Pay Equity
8.1 What does it mean to “maintain pay equity”?
8.2 How is pay equity maintained when there are changes to job classes?
8.3 If more men are hired in a female job class, does it become a male job class?
8.4 If a male job class is not currently filled can it still be used as a comparator?
8.5 How do employers handle changes in wages after pay equity is achieved?
8.6 How do employers deal with new female job classes?
8.7 Are employers and unions required to negotiate a maintenance agreement?
8.8 Is it necessary for Part II employers to amend and re-post a pay equity plan for maintenance?
8.9 Can previous wage increases “count” towards achieving pay equity?

9 Part II Requirements for Implementing Pay Equity for Certain Employers/Unions

9 Part II Requirements for Implementing Pay Equity for Certain Employers/Unions
9.1 Requirement to use job-to-job before proportional value method
9.2 Requirement to notify the Commission if pay equity cannot be achieved
9.3 Requirement to use a Gender Neutral Comparison System
9.4 Pay Equity Plans
9.5 What is a “deemed approved” pay equity plan?
9.6 What is the significance of a “deemed approved” pay equity plan?
9.7 Is it possible to make a complaint about a deemed approved plan?
9.8 When can a “deemed approved plan” be amended or a new plan developed?
9.9 Changed Circumstances
9.10 Q&As Pay Equity Plans
9.11 Pay Equity Adjustments
9.12 Q&As Pay Equity Adjustments

10 Pay Equity in Unionized Workplaces

10 Pay Equity in Unionized Workplaces
10.1 What are the employer’s and union’s pay equity responsibilities?
10.2 How is bargaining strength used to explain gender wage differences?
10.3 What happens when a union becomes certified as the bargaining agent for a group of employees in an establishment after a deemed approved plan?
10.4 Disclosure of information
10.5 Q&As Unionized Workplaces

11 Proxy Comparison Method

11.1 Brief History
11.2 What is the impact of the repeal and re-instatement of proxy on pay equity adjustments?
11.3 Which organizations can use the proxy method?
11.4 How does the proxy method work?
11.5 When must proxy pay equity be implemented and achieved by?
11.6 Implementing and Achieving Pay Equity Using the Proxy Method
11.7 Q&A Proxy Funding
11.8 How is maintaining using the proxy method different from job-to-job or proportional value methods?

12 Pay Equity Commission

12.1 About the Pay Equity Commission
12.2 About the Pay Equity Office
12.3 About the Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal

13 Enforcement and Complaints

13 Enforcement and Complaints
13.1 What is the timeframe for making a complaint?
13.2 Who can make a complaint?
13.3 Can an employee represented by a union make a pay equity complaint?
13.4 How does the Pay Equity Act protect employees who make pay equity complaints?
13.5 What are reasons for filing a complaint under the Pay Equity Act?
13.6 What happens in the application process?
13.7 What is the role of a Review Officer?
13.8 What are the possible outcomes of investigations?
13.9 What happens when an employer or union complain about changed circumstances?
13.10 What happens when the complaint is that pay equity is not being maintained?
13.11 What happens when the complaint is about the preparation of a pay equity plan?
13.12 How does someone make anonymous complaints?
13.13 How does someone get a hearing before the Tribunal?
13.14 Are there offences and fines for failing to comply with the Pay Equity Act?

14 Monitoring Programs

14.1 Surveillance proactive effectuée par le Bureau
14.1 Pro-active Compliance Programs of the Pay Equity Office (formerly “Monitoring Programs”)
14.2 What information do Review Officers ask for in proactive compliance files?
14.3 Will businesses be reviewed actively even if there has been no complaint made?
14.4 What if the employer cannot find the company’s pay equity documents?
14.5 Does the Pay Equity Office guarantee that an employer will not have future complaints after being monitored?

15 Glossary

15 Glossary

16 Appendix

16.2 Contact Information
16.1 Forms
16.2 Contact Information

Ontario’s Pay Equity Act With Selected Case References, 2022

Introduction
Note to reader
Acknowledgments
Preamble

PART I GENERAL

Preamble
Interpretation, posting and miscellaneous Definitions
Crown as employer
Combined establishments
Application
Purpose
Value determination
Achievement of pay equity (s. 5.1(1))
Achievement of pay equity (s. 6(1))
Pay equity required
Posting of notice
Exceptions
Reduction, intimidation, adjustments

PART II IMPLEMENTATION: PUBLIC SECTOR AND LARGE PRIVATE SECTOR EMPLOYER

Definition
Application
Comparison of job classes
Pay equity plans required
Sale of a business
Application of s. 13.1 in other circumstances
Establishments with bargaining units
Changed circumstances
Changed circumstances, no bargaining units
Establishments without bargaining units
Investigation by review officer
Settling of plan

PART III.1 PROPORTIONAL VALUE METHOD OF COMPARISON

Application
Proportional method required
Proportional value comparison method
Amended pay equity plans
Plan binding
Contents of plans
Requirement to post plans
Bargaining unit employees
Non-bargaining unit employees
Date of first compensation adjustments

PART III.2 PROXY METHOD OF COMPARISON

PART IV ENFORCEMENT

Complaints
Investigation of complaints
Orders by review officers
Hearings
Settlements
Offences and penalties

PART V ADMINISTRATION

Commission continued
Hearings Tribunal
Powers and duties of Tribunal
Death or incapacity of member
Exclusive jurisdiction
Testimony in civil proceedings
Parties to proceedings
Pay Equity Office
Review officers
Warrants

PART VI REGULATIONS AND MISCELLANEOUS

Regulations
Review of Act
Crown bound
Schedule

16.2 Contact Information

Pay Equity Office: https://payequity.gov.on.ca/home-2022/

Pay Equity Hearings Tribunal: https://www.olrb.gov.on.ca/pec/PEHT/default.asp

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