B.C. to hold consultations on pay transparency legislation

British Columbia has announced that it will carry out consultations across the province starting this spring over a new legislation on pay transparency in a bid to reduce the wage gap between men and women.

In an announcement, the provincial government said it will undertake consultations with the following sectors:

• Indigenous organisations
• Public- and private-sector employer groups
• Business and union organisations
• Equity-seeking organisations
• Other groups that advocate for equal opportunity for women
• Employers that have already established such policies.

British Columbia is one of the four provinces across Canada that has yet to introduce a pay transparency or pay equity legislation. It also has one of the largest pay gap between genders across the country, with women on average making about 20% less than men.

"In B.C., women continue to make less, on average, than men," said Grace Lore, Parliamentary Secretary for Gender Equity, in a statement.

"Indigenous women, women of colour, immigrant women, and Two-Spirit, non-binary and transgender people also face barriers that others do not. We want to hear from a variety of groups and individuals so that we can build made-in-B.C. pay transparency legislation that will help us address pay inequity and move toward equality."

According to the provincial government, the results pooled from the consultation will be used for the development of pay transparency legislation and on other initiatives that seek to narrow the pay gap between men and women.

"This includes making historic investments in childcare, increasing housing for women and children rebuilding their lives after violence, raising B.C.'s minimum wage, raising liquor-server wages – 80% of whom are women – and boosting provincial employment and skills training and anti-racism initiatives," the government said.

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The announcement fell on the same day as International Women's Day, where Labour Minister Harry Bains said is reserved by the rest of the world to show respect and recognise the accomplishments of women and girls.

"We also know the fight for equality is ongoing. This is why we are taking the next step toward our commitment to introduce pay transparency in B.C.," said Bains.

Felicia Bochicchio, chief executive officer at software company Unbounce, welcomed the push for a legislation on the employers' side, stressing that it is also the company's responsibility to ensure workers are paid equally.

"As company leaders, we have a responsibility to ensure our people are receiving equal pay for equal work – the onus for being paid fairly should no longer fall on women and other marginalised groups," said Bochicchio in a statement.

"Pay transparency legislation is a huge leap forward in addressing and hopefully closing the gender pay gap. At Unbounce, our journey of prioritising equal pay and encouraging others to do the same continues and we're looking forward to joining like-minded companies in reaching full pay transparency in 2022," she added.