Since it was established in October 2023, the Library of Parliament pay equity committee has been working diligently towards the publication of a pay equity plan in accordance with the requirements of the Pay Equity Act.
During the last meeting in May, the committee conducted a vote on the job evaluation tool and the process for determining the value of work. The committee was unable to reach a consensus on either of these issues.
Despite opposition from the employee representatives, the employer indicated their intention to ask the Office of the Pay Equity Commission (OPEC) to dissolve the committee in accordance with article 28 of the Pay Equity Act and instead create a pay equity plan without the contributions of the employee representatives.
In response, the employee representatives have sent a notice of dispute to the OPEC to request mediation regarding the two outstandings issues. We believe that the present impasse can be resolved and this work can be achieved through the committee. Therefore, the employer has no grounds to claim that it is necessary to proceed without it.
The employee representatives’ have requested that committee meetings resume so that together we can continue the discussions on gender predominance and total compensation. The employer, however, has so far refused to meet again.
We remain convinced that there is still a solution. Members of predominantly female job categories deserve to have their remuneration determined in full compliance with the Pay Equity Act by a committee made up of representatives of the employer and employees.
We will continue to keep you updated on any further developments and the steps we will be taking moving forward.
For more information, see CAPE’s Issue page on Pay Equity. Should you have any questions please contact general@ acep-cape.ca.
